And the Sky was set ablaze
by Aldon Blackreyne
Summary: Westeros and Essos have played a big part in the game of power. But what of Sothoros? What if the houses from the Southern continent decided to make their mark on history. After the Long Night , but before the Andal invasion. A new power arrives in Westeros. They are House Blackreyne, and they have a weapons with wings of their own. MAJOR AU.
1. Blackreyne

**House Blackreyne**

 **Banner:** A Black Stallion with black dragon wings on a silver field.

 **Motto:** Iron and Blood

 **Founder:** Daravon Blackreyne

 **Titles:** The Trident King (Formerly), Warlord of the Isles, High Reaver of Arnor.

 **Seats**

Arnor- located on the Island of Bloodstone in the Stepstones

Roon- located on Great Wyk in the Iron Islands

Oldstones- located on the Isle of Faces in the Riverlands (Formerly)

 **Holdings**

The Stepstones: Bloodstone, Tyrosh, (the rest from Largest to smallest), Tombstone, Horseshoe Isle, Firestone, Gemstone, Keystone, Ramstone, Saathstone, Sunstone, Gallows Isle, Blackstone, Greystone, Redstone, Bluestone, Yellowstone

The Iron Islands: Great Wyk, Harlaw, Pyke, Orkmont, Blacktyde, Saltcliffe, Old Wyk. Lonely Light is used as a prison, no house resides there.

 **Cadet branch:** House Reyne, House Justinian

 **Ancestral Weapon:** Fury

Bannermen

The Stepstones: **House Saan** of Tombstone, **House Adarys** of Tyrosh, **House Qhoqua** of Horseshoe Isle, **House Lashare** of Firestone, **House Xhore** of Gemstone, **House Ryndoon** of Keystone, **House Otherys** of Sunstone, **House Shepherd** of Ramstone, **House Mazor** of Saathstone, **House Uhoris** of Gallows Isle, **House Naharis** of Blackstone, **House Rhegan** of Greystone, **House Plumm** of Redstone, **House Toraq** of Bluetone, **House Pate** of Yellowstone.

The Iron Islands: **House Thenn** of Great Wyk, **House Hornfoot** of Harlaw, **House Nightrun** of Pyke, **House Caverns** of Orkmont, **House Shorefrost** of Blacktyde, **House Riverice** of Saltcliffe. The Giants and the Children of the Forest dwell on Old Wyk.

House Blackreyne is a powerful family from the continent of Sothoros. They are a warlike house that dedicates it life to the concept. War has always been a part of human history. But until House Blackreyne is was never an art. Blackreynes are part of a people known as Arnorians. They are locked in a long and bitter feud with House Whitehall of the Eridans. Blackreynes are known for their skill in arms and ruthlessly cunning minds. Members of this house tend to be powerfully built with jet black hair and silvery eyes. But their crowning symbol is a winged hybrid creature called a Thestral

 **Religion and Customs**

The Dieties the Arnorians worship are known as the Titan Triumvirant. These Titans each representing an aspect of Arnorian life. Typhus the Titan of the Sea, Bellicore the Titan of War, and Orpiun the Tital of Labor. The Triumvirant fight the malevolent counterparts called The Triad Gods. Shivas, the God of Destruction, Illues the God of Plagues, and Vadus the God of Chaos. Despite this Arnorians are not a pious people in fact they despise religious fanaticism. Their holy scriptures have little when it comes to laws. Those are saved for man to make. They merely state to honor the Titans and pay your dues. Arnorians believe that those that have proven themselves shall join the Great Host the Triumvirant. This Great Host shall battle the monsters of the Triadin the final battle known as Apokalyx.

Unlike the rest of the seven kingdoms Feudalism is nonexistent. The only houses that exist are the ones that govern an island.

Marraiges are closely regulated. Any marriage that is to happen have consent from both parties. There must be no more than a 5 year age difference between the couple and they must be 16 years or older. Unlike most houses who marry for political purposes. Arnorians are free to marry whomever they please, whether they be highborn or commoner.

Arnorians are encouraged to have many children as a result adultery is quite commonly practiced by both genders. Birthing a child is considered a great honor in since they are doing a service to the state. Incest was a complex manner. Those between siblings and cousins were allowed as long as it was consensual. But other incestuous pairings such as parent and child were intolerable. Bastard are given most the same opportunities as trueborn children save for inheritance.

Every Blackreyne male also had to go through their own rite of passage. During this time a convict that had been set loose in Mount Coradomus. Mount Coradomus has a vast network of caves running all over it. The caves twist and turn like a maze and made it easy to get lost. Every Blackreyne boy had to hunt down and kill the convict before the convict is able to escape. If the convict does get out, then the boy has failed. If he failed then he would be passed over in the line of Succession. Both are armed and this is done at the age of 12.

Women in Arnorian culture were given a great deal of freedom in court. Being treated as equal to men even being given a voice on important matters. Given seats of power, Ownership of things such as a ship or a business.

The Blackreynes also have a unique line of secession. In House Blackreyne, the title immediately goes to the eldest male of the family. Most often this meant that the brother comes before the son. The reason for this is brothers share the same blood, sons share only half. This also ensures that no child ever sits on the throne of Arnor.

Every person has a purpose. Arnorians are keen to tell people. If you don't have work, you are given work. In time everyone serves the state one way or another.

 **Military**

As a warrior cult and a seafaring people, much time is put into making their people the into skilled sailors and fighters. All the houses have control of their workforce, but all warriors answer only to House Blackreyne.

From birth all males are inspected then determined whether they will be a worker or a soldier. The fittest become warriors, those with any imperfections become workers. Regardless both workers and soldiers have one thing in common, their ability to sail.

All those chosen to be warriors undergo a harsh and intense decade of training starting from the time they are 8 years old. as they get older the training becomes more and more intense. The training often got to the point where bones cracked and blood flowed. Yet it never got fatal. If a cadet died under a trainer's eye, the trainer was punished severely.

The recruits were taught not to feel fear, pain, or any emotion that may hamper their ability to fight. They were also taught to control their sexual urges. These were meant to instill in their minds a code. 'Kill those who attack you, ignore those who don't. Do not Rape, do not steal and do not flee from battle.'

The end result is a disiplined and deadly fighting force. Capable of marching for long periods of time without tiring and could receive great injuries without showing any sign of distress.

The recruits then make a decision as to which branch of the military they wished to be in. The Blackreynes had three types of warriors, Horse archers, Heavy infantry and Foot archers.

Heavy Infantry wear a breastplate with shoulder guards, greaves, vambracers, and a Barbute helmet all made of steal. They use the trident, a round shield, and a warhammer due to it's effectiveness against armour.

Archers wear scale armour and use the recurve bow and duo swords. Blackreyne archers are the finest in westeros. Able to stay accurate up to 240 meters. Archery is a major factor in the Blackreyne military. Archers usually outnumber heavy units 2 to 1.

Workers and hardly left out in this manner. Nor are women. The Blackreynes believe that everyone should be able to defend themselves. As well as being taught to work their respective positions. Arnorian workers were trained to use the very tools they work with to fight. Miners for example were taught they way of the pickaxe, masons and smiths the hammer, fishermen the net and trident, woodcutters the axe, cooks the cleaver and farmers the scythe. To this end any job can be turned into an effective fighting style. They are hardly a match for a Blackreyne warrior due to the lack of intense training. But they can beat back any brigand foolish enough to think them easy prey.

Women were also taught how to fight. Their style is the dagger dance. As women were usually physically inferior to men. They were instead trained to be quick and precise. Women go through vigorous daily exercise for according to the Blackreynes. Tough women breed tough men. Some women become warriors. These form another part of the Blackreyne military, the Valkerans.

 **Economy**

What the Iron Islands and the Stepstones lack in gold and soil, they more than make up for in sea products. House Blackreyne has exploited this to the fullest of their abilities. They have one the busiest seafood markets in the western coast. All seafood is provided by the Oceanic Harvesting fleet. Hundreds of Carracks using diving bells hunt and gather every form of vegitation and sea creature that is edible. The Arnorians have thus become completely sustained by the oceans of the world. House Blackreyne often loan the services of their soldiers to their allied houses (for a price of course). Another source of income is their criminal solution system. The other kingdoms pay the Blackreynes to take in their criminals to do with as they please.

 **Law and Justice**

Arnorians have the strictest code of justice in Westeros. In their mind the idea is to make the penalty for crime so terrifying that it becomes unthinkable to commit them. Rape is considered among the most vile of crimes and so results in the maximum punishment, Impalement. Murderers are fed alive to predatory animals thieves loose a whole leg. Thus far these brutal but effective methods are working. Only 50 people have committed a crime in 250 years. Trials are usually overseen by three judges each one represents a Titan. If a man is being convicted then the judges are men. If it's a woman than the judges are women. Unlike men, women are given a far less severe penalty. Usually it involves 4 lashes to the back for thievery and imprisonment for murder.

As in the rest of Westeros, the Guest Right is a sacred law. If a man breaks the Guest Right, He and every male relative of age will be impaled as a example. So far no one has done so.

 **Arnor**

Arnor is House Blackreynes seat of power in the Stepstones. Arnor is set between two cliffs in a mountain cluster. These mountains guarded the fortress on three sides. Leaving only the northern side open to attack. Arnor is divided into two parts, The Curtain Wall, and The Stronghold.

The first part of Arnor is the great curtain wall. The wall is 200 feet high 4,000 feet long and 80 feet thick. It is made of rammed earth between two frames of solid stone. It is laid out in a series of triangular shaped juts designed for deflecting projectiles. The wall has a second level about twenty feet higher than the main level, the main level has ballistas and the second level has catapults. Guard towers line the wall each one armed with a catapult. The wall is protected by a deep ditch wide and deep enough to swallow a siege tower. The drawbridge that spans the bridge is a seesaw design with a counterweight one end. This allows for the case if the chain is cut the drawbridge stays closed. Behind the drawbridge are four iron portcullises directly in front of the main gate. The main gate is four feet thick made of oak between two sheets of steel. Two pentagon shaped towers flank the gate and the gatehouse acts as the command tower of the wall. Behind the wall are four stone stairways that lead to the top of the walls. Also there are numerous trebuchets

Behind the wall is the Stronghold itself. Here is where the cliffs are at their narrowest and the terrain at it's steepest. A stairway leads from the final gate from the curtain wall to the main gate of the stronghold. The Stronghold is made up of an inner ward and the Keep. The Inner Ward consists of a wall 100 feet high and 40 feet thick. The gatehouse is flanked by two Pentagon shaped towers and two larger drum shaped towers

The Keep is an 800 foot high drum shaped structure. Every 200 feet the Keep narrows. It is large enough to house the Throne room, great hall, barracks, stables, storehouse, library, armory, smithy, kennels, kitchens, guesthouses and the crypts. The only way into the keep is through the bend. The bend is a structure connects the keep to the cliff behind it. It has two gatehouses, a real one to the right and a false entrance on the left. An attacker must enter the gatehouse then make a u turn towards the Keep's main gate. Both the Gate of the Inner ward and the keep consists of double doors and a portcullis.

 **Torturer's Deep**

In the southern coast of Bloodstone is the Capitol city of the Stepstones, Torturer's Deep. Once a minor harbor, the Blackreynes transformed it into a fortified port city. Able to harbor a thousand ships and home to about 400,000 people, Torturer's Deep is as large if not larger than Lannisport. The Deep is crescent shaped and built in layers. allowing them to easily expand should it get crowded. Due to it's location in the narrow sea, many ships pass through Torturer's Deep and earns them a steady income from those who wish to pass the Stepstones. The location allows them to control sea trade and shipping from the free cities to the ports and harbors in Dorne and the western coast of Westeros. Like all Blackreyne settlements Torturer's Deep is fortified. With double walls lined with towers catapults and ballistas, Torturer's Deep is well prepared for any assault.

 **The Thestral**

The Thestral was created by the Blackreynes to combat the wild dragons of Sothoros. The Offspring of a horse and a dragon, Thestrals are tough, fearless and aggressive. Due to their ancestry, Thestrals are invulnerable to fire and their black hides are resistant to most human weapons. Thestrals weapons are the thumb spikes on their wings and their maws spit lightning. Thestrals have dragon-like wings, a lizard-like tail and instead of a horse's mane a single spiny ridge runs along the back of the neck. Instead of hooves, Thestrals have clawed feet. Thestrals are carnivorous and reproduces by laying eggs. These eggs will only hatch when struck by lightning.

 **Historical members**

 _Daravon Blackreyne_ \- Founder of the House

 _Boromir Blackreyne_ \- Led the Exodus out of Sothoryos

 _Garalir Blackreyne_ \- Boromir's brother, Steward to the Vault

 _Deren Reyne_ \- Boromir's Eldest Bastard

 _Orlan Blackreyne_ \- Brought the Arbor into their fold

 _Caedus Blackreyne_ \- Slew Artys Arryn at the Battle of the Moon

 _Jerricoe Blackreyne_ \- Became the first Trident King

 _Balthezar Blackreyne_ \- Razed Andalos along with Theon Stark

 _Cella Blackreyne_ \- Married Benedict Rivers and founded House Justinian

 _Derethor Blackreyne_ \- Fought Tyrion II Lannister in the Western War

 _Titus Blackreyne_ \- Ended the Western War

 _Nyra Blackreyne_ \- Led the Blackreynes in the Sister War

 _Waldorf Blackreyne_ \- Arnor's worst ruler to ever exist

 _Barrigan_ and _Galivan Blackreyne_ \- Waldorfs twin younger brothers slain in the Teague Uprising

 _Roger Blackreyne_ \- Waldorf's second youngest brother, usurped him and went on to win the Teague Uprising

 _Theodred Blackreyne_ \- Roger's younger brother

 _Braveon Blackreyne_ \- Founder of Braavos

 _Lucifer Blackreyne_ \- Eldest grandson of Braveon, creator of Lucifer's Law

 _Licinia Blackreyne -_ Granddaughter of Braveon

 _Marion Blackreyne_ \- Youngest child of Braveon

 _Jaedus Blackreyne_ \- Considered one of the greatest Blackreyne Kings. Led a great slave rebellion in Essos.

 _Dev Blackreyne_ \- Mastermind of the Dragon Hunt


	2. Whitehall

**House Whitehall**

 **Sigil** : A White Pegasus on a Golden Field

 **Motto** : Wings of Faith

 **Founder** : Haleron Whitehall

 **Titles** : The Green Kings, Chancellor of Eridon, Keepers of the Faith

 **Seat** : Skyfall - Shrykan

 **Holdings**

The Shadowlands

Land of the Shrykes

K'Dath

Mussovy

The Grey Waste

Plains of the Jogos Nhai

 **Ancestral Weapon** : Piety

 **Bannermen** : **House Soren** , dukedom of the Shrykelands, **House Ilinum** , dukedom of Mussovy, **House Neandus** , dukedom of K'Dath. **House Josoris** , Dukedom of the Jogos Nhai Plains. **House Amirad** of the Shadowlands. Hundreds of minor houses.

Like their ancient enemies the Blackreynes, House Whitehall came from the continent of Sothoryos. Part of a people known as the Eridonians, the two families could not be more polar opposite of each other. Eridonian's are a feudalistic people, with two classes, nobility and peasantry. Unlike the Arnorians who believed in equality, The Eridonians society has a class system, a system that they work to ensure stays the same. House Whitehall is known for it's chivalry, honor and devout faith. Members of the family tend to be Tall and lean, with light brown hair and amber eyes. In contrast to the Blackreynes, House Whitehall possesses a winged creature known as a Pegasus.

 **Religion and Customs**

Unlike the Blackreyne's three dieties. House Whitehall worships a single entity known as the Polarius the sun. Polarius, the Father of Light is not unlike Rh'llor in many ways. They pray to him for guidance, protection, justice, courage and strength. Those that worship the Father of Light are utterly devoted to him. They believe that any sinner and non believer must face judgment. They justify their actions by reasoning with themselves that it's what Polarius wants them to do.

The leader of the Faith of the Father is called the High Prophet. The High Prophet wields power that surpasses any duke and even rivals the High Chancellor himself. The High Prophet is considered the voice of the Father down on earth, Below him are the Disciples, Disciples are the pious guides of the nobles, every Duke, Earl, Count and Paladin knight is accompanied by one. Protecting these holy men are the martyrans.

Eridonian nobility consists of the Dukes who govern each province, Below the Dukes are the Earls. The more Earls that serve a Duke, the more powerful the Duke is. Nobles that are not fit to become a knight usually become merchants, tradesmen, doctors and teachers, these are the Counts. Finally there are the knights.

Marraiges are restricted to nobility and is considered holy. These marraiges are usually arranged at a young age by the parents of the spouses. No thought is given to age difference or to the feelings of the couple. All that mattered was what the families will gain from the match. In Eridon, marraiges are forever binding, the lady must be forever faithful to her husband. Should a woman be unfaithful, her husband is allowed to beat her. Peasants are not allowed to leave the lands of their Earls. As a result inbreeding is often practice and results in clubbed feet, lazy eyes and extra fingers.

The Peasantry of Eridon are slaves in all but name. Treated as property rather than people, they are uneducated and without honor. All peasants must surrender 9/10ths of their products to their Earl. Thus peasants remain poor their entire lives. Not that their lives mattered to the nobility. They are considered battle fodder, nothing more. They are forbidden from the temples of Polarius and cannot worship him directly. Regardless they still fear and honor him.

 **Military**

It it easy to tell the nobility from the peasantry in battle by one simple thing, horses. If a man had a horse it meant that he was rich enough to own one and care for it. Seeing as peasants only had enough to sustain their lives.

Knights are the cream of the Whitehall army. Their are two types of knights Paladins and Pilgrims. Many paladins eventually become Earls in their own right. Knights make up 1/3rd of the Eridon Army.

Paladin knights are made up of Eridan nobility. Every fit male noble was taken to be trained in knighthood. The training instilled honor discipline and courage in Eridonian squires. They were trained in the use the sword, lance, hammer, axe, and mace. They never learned how to use ranged weapons since they considered them dishonorable. To earn knighthood, every squire must go on a quest. Quests vary, they could range from taking down bandits or saving a kidnapped maiden. Or it could also be proving yourself in battle. By the time they had earned their knighthood they were tough, fearless. and possessed a code of honor.

Paladin armour includes a leather doublet, chailmail and full plate armour with a bascinet helm. Their equipment includes a lance, kite shield and a second weapon of their choosing. Usually it's a longsword, but other weapons have not been excluded. All Paladins ride and are equiped with barding. The finest Paladins eventually become Pegasus knights.

Pilgrims are peasant knights. Paladins take the fittest of their peasant males as squires, they are taught seperately from the noble knights. Though they are not as disciplined or equipped as paladins. Pilgrims are arguably as skilled and expierienced as their noble conterparts. Pilgrims never rise above the status of knight. Unlike the Paladins who end up owning a small keep, Pilgrims are sworn in service to a noble.

Pilgrims are clad in plate armour, with a Great Helm. They're equipped with the Greatsword and a heater shield. Pilgrims ride Rounceys into battle. Peasants that become knights stay just that. Though they get the horse and armour befitting a knight, they will never become anything more.

The peasant foot soldiers of Eridon are a different story. They are poorly equiped and hardly trained in fighting at all. They come in three types, archers, men at arms and martyrans.

Martyrans are eunuch soldiers devoted to the Faith of the Father. Their fanaticism goes beyond tot point of insanity, determined to kill those they deem heretics, heathens and enemies of the faith. Martyrans have no training, but they make up for it in pure madness. They have no concept of pain and would continue attacking even if they are on fire or lost their arms. It seems the only way to stop them is to cut off their heads. Yet their are completely obedient to the High Prophet and his disciples taking any order without question.

Martyrans are clad in chainmail over boiled leather with spikes on the elbows and knees and helms with cruel horns. They are armed with blades attached to vambraces on the wrists and clawed gauntlets. Their skin is brindled and scared a covered in rings and their teeth are filed to fangs.

Men at arms are basically men conscipted to fight. Farmers, stableboys, and shepherds are the most common in the ranks. Men at arms only have chainmail and a kettle hat. All men at arms have a spear a tower shield and a secondary weapon, but their weapons are of poor quality.

Archers are considered the lowest form of soldier. Since they are considered to have no honor, they are allowed to use dishonorable weapons, namely the crossbow. Besides their crossbow they are also armed with a knife and tomahawk for close quarters combat. Since archers are considered dishonorable, they only have boiled leather to protect themselves.

 **Laws and Justice**

Arnorian justice was considered strict, but Eridon justice was regarded as cruel. While the nobles are given softer punishments, for the peasantry, there was no mercy. They do not get a trial, nor do they have a chance to defend themselves. Thieves loose their arms, murderers and rapists are burned in order to 'cleanse' their souls. Rebel and any peasant that attacks a noble are given the worst punishment of all. They and their families friends and associates are hanged. Such is the price of rebellion.

Nobles on the other hand are a different manner. If one noble has been wronged by a fellow noble, then they are to settle their grievance in single combat. If the charge is more serious, than a trial is held. In these trials there is only a single judge. To avoid prejudice, the judge is usually a duke who has no ties to either the accuser or accused.

Eridon law forbids prostitution, homosexuality, lying in any form, adultery, incest, and blasphemy.

The one law that both Eridon and Arnor have in common is the guest right. As long as a guest of a house is given food, then no harm shall befall him. All those who break this sacred law are slowly dismembered.

 **Economy**

Eridon gets it's wealth from the fertile lands of it's domain. Fields of corn, wheat, barley, oats, fruits and vegetables stretch for miles. Grapes that make wines of many colors and tastes are plentiful. Trade coming in and out of Eridon fills the coffers of the Eridon nobles. The vast woods of Mussovy, provide Eridon with a plentiful supply of wood.

 **Eridon Castle**

On the northern shore of the Hidden Sea is the Seat of House Whitehall. Eridon Castle. Eridon is a concentric castle, wall within walls and a great keep in the center. Located on a hill, Eridon is can see enemies coming for miles

Eridon's first line of defense is a the ditch that surrounds the castle on three sides. The ditch is wide at the top and narror at the bottom. It's edges and bottom are covered in filth crusted wooden stakes. To prevent the ditch from flooding, the ends of the ditch have stone towers overlooking the Hidden Sea. Behind the ditch is the ramparts and a thick wooden pailsade crowned with spikes. The palisade is lined with watchtowers for archers. A rolling bridge located on the east side. spans the ditch for crossing. Behind the palisade is the main moat. The moat is fed by water of the hidden sea. This effectively turns the Eridon into an island.

After the moat is the square wall of the outer ward itself. The walls of the outer ward are 100 feet high and 30 feet thick. Made of rammed earth, the outer wall has round towers at the corners and square ones on the sides. The wall is lines with arrowslits, ballistas and machicolations Catapults are set up on the towers. The gatehouse is located on the north side full of murder holes. It has a huge drawbridge to span the moat and two portcullises behind it before reaching the main gate of the outer wall. The final gate is 20 feet high and 3 feet of solid oak wrought in iron. Trebuchets are set up in the land between the outer and inner wards.

Passed the trebuchets is the inner ward. The walls of the inner ward are sloped being 50 feet at the top and ninety feet at the bottom. At 300 feet high, they tower over the walls of the outer ward. The Inner wall is set up simular to the outer wall, The difference is the inner ward has no manchicolations and the gatehouse is located on the south side.

Finally came the keep itself. The Keep was a enormous square tower that rose 1,000 feet into the air. The tower itself narrowed after 500 feet with a giant fire up top thus making the keep a lighthouse as well, Simular to Arnor Keep, Eridon keep is large enough to house the storeroom, armoury, barracks, stables, kitchen, royal quarters, guestrooms, library and crypts comfortably. The gatehouse of the keep is on the north side. It has no less than 4 portcullises and a solid iron gate.

The Capitol of Eridan is Skyfall, formerly known as the City of Winged Men. Just a mile away from Eridon Castle. The city is protected by high walls and guard towers with several gates. Skyfall is the center of all trade in the far east, far larger than Qarth.

 **Pegasus**

House Whitehalls ultimate weapon is the Pegasus. Bred from a horse and a great eagle, the Pegasus is considered one of the most beautiful creatures in the world. Like the Thestral, the hide of a Pegasus cannot be pierced by human weapons. Though they are not immune to fire, they can swim on the surface of the water like a duck. Pegasus look mostly like ordinary horses, the main difference being that the Pegasus has eagle-like wings, and cloven hooves. A pegasus has two weapons, the first is a platinum coloured horn on it's forehead. This horn can pierce the hides of both Thestrals and dragons of Essos. Their second weapon is their wings. The between the regular feathers of a pegasus wings are a smaller special feather type. These feathers are only 2 inches long, as light as their regular counterparts but are sharp as glass and harder as diamond. The feathers can pierce armour and wood alike. Pegasus are able to hurl these deadly missiles by beating their wings rapidly in the air. They always grow back every hour allowing them to do it on a regular basis. All pegasus have white hides and are herbivores.

 **Historical members**

Haleron Whitehall - Founder of the House

Aric Whitehall - Led the Exodus out of Sothoros

Sorem Whitehall - Expanded the Kingdom of Alvion

Farlow Whitehall - Slain by Zhea Zorseface

Hammond Whitehall - Subdued the Jogos Nhai

Verden Whitehall - Hammond's bastard brother, slain by Zhe Zorseface

Eckthelon Whitehall - Took over Qarth


	3. Powerhouses

**The Beginning**

The Continent of Sothoros (The Southern Realm). A land whose legacy is written and ends in blood. Little is known about Sothoros in the other continents. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, Sothoros is a miserable place, bug infested jungle covered, humid and filled with every disease known to man. But it was not always like this, Thousands of years ago, before the long night. Sothoros was a very different place.

Sothoros was once a thriving continent with hundreds of millions of people. The people of the southern continent were very diverse in terms of skin colors, Ranging from dark skin of the summer islanders to a light tan, but never pale. Structures here were unlike eny in the world. They were literally able to take stones and fit them together without cutting them. Castles reached into the heavens like stone fists and roads that connected to every town, city, villaige and keep.

Few people know the entire geography of Sothoros. But those that lived there knew every detail. According to Sothoros is maller than Essos but not by much, the difference being only half a million square miles. The northern part of Sothoros is 3 million square miles of near impregnable jungle called the Azeron Basin, about a 1/7th of the continent.

Sothoros was divided into two parts by two natural barriers. The northern barrier is the Zamoros River, to the south is the trembling mountains. The Trembling mountains, named after the storms that constantly brewed over them, has a maze os passes and caves which the two nations use for land attacks. The two halves of the continent are as different as night and day. The East is named Eridon and the West is called Arnor.

Eridon, the East is the larger of the two in terms of landmass. It is fertile and heavily populated. Most of the Azeron is in Eridon. Yet it only makes up a small portion of the Eridon landmass about a fourth of the territory. With it's fertile soil and forests of fruit trees, the East is watered by numerous lakes and rivers. There is farmland and pastures can stretch for miles around. The Farms are run by farming villages. Eridonians effectionately call Eridon the Motherland

Arnor, the West is what the East is not, rocky, dry and barren. The West is actually an archipelago of numerous large islands with only a fifth of it's land territory connected to the mainland. The mainland divides the Basilisk Isles in the north from the Hydra Isles in the south. The Azeron makes up 1/3rd of the Arnorian mainland, the rest is dense barren desert. Collectively, Hydra Isles dwarf the Summer Isles, with the largest island Roon being twice the size of Jhala. Very little grows on the islands due to the harsh climate. But what the West lacked in fertility, they made up for in wealth. The Hydra Isles were teeming with all sorts of precious metals, while the Basilisk Isles burst with gems and minerals. The water's surrounding the islands were brimming with all manner of sealife, fish, crabs, seals, sharks, and whales. The people of Arnor call it the Fatherland.

Sothoros has known nothing but war since the beginning. In the Dawn Age, inumerable clans battled for supremacy over Sothoros. Out of these many. two Familes took it upon themselves to unite the continent. The Blackreyne Warlords of Arnor, and the Whitehall Chancellors of Eridon. Eventually these two families united the rallied many clans under their banners.

House Whitehall had the support of the knights, squires, farmers, herders, clergymen, scholars, artists and carpenters. In addition they also had the wealth of merchants, and nobles. House Blackreyne gained the alliegiance of the sailors, fishermen, miners, masons, smiths and huntsmen. Outcasts such as mercenaries, pirates, outlaws, smugglers, and whores sought refuge under the Blackreyne banners. The Blackreynes and their followers were called The Men of the West. While the Whitehalls and their followers were called Easterlings. The Blackreynes ruled the sea, but on land House Whitehall reigned supreme

In Westeros, feuding families were not uncommon, The Blackwood/Braken feud in the Riverlands and the Forrester/Whitehill feud in the North. But their's was nothing compared to the animosity between Blackreyne and Whitehall. Nobody really knows how their feud started. Most accouts tell of a Blackreyne Prince, running off with the eldest daughter of Chancellor Whitehall. The Whitehall say that she was abducted and raped. The Blackreynes insist that the prince was helping the daughter escape her overbearing family. Chancellor Whitehall demended the return of his dautghter, The Blackreynes replied, "Come and try to take our Queen." Regardless of what the truth was, the families became sworn enemies after that.

For thousands years the two families fought each other to a stalemate. Neither side truly gained an advantage over the other. Despite their grievances, commerce between the two was very much active. Seeing as both houses had something that the other wanted. The Whithalls needed gold and the Blackreynes needed food such as wheat, grain, flour, and corn. Sometimes a member of each family would marry in an attempt to unite them. But ultimately these unions failed to end the feud. Their bickering would come to an end when a powerful House came from the continent of Ulthos. This was House Galador.

The Galadors manage to bring the warring houses to heel and eventually the Blackreynes and Whitehalls vowed to serve the Galador kings loyally. They formed the Triumvirant with the Galadors in command. Under the rule of the benevolent House Galador, Sothoros thrived. Being their strongest bannermen, the Blackreynes and Whitehalls, often married their children with those of House Galador. Sometimes members of both families would act as stewards. While the tension between the families were tense, the Galador's were able to keep them in line.

The reason for House Galador was able to do this with ease was their pocession of great wizards and witches and the Great Eagles. The Great Eagles were gigantic in size. With a wingspan of 50 meters. These magnificent birds were the mounts of the Galadors. Despite their appearance, The great eagles were not meant to cower others into submission. But rather to protect them from an ever greater threat. These threats were the wild dragons and the dead.

The wild dragons as the Sothorosi called them were actually Wyverns, close kin to dragons. Wyverns are smaller than dragons, and unlike their depictions had four legs instead of two. Although they cannot breath fire, they are more durable. They were fast, deadly, and fast breeders. They grew quickly numbering in the thousands. They came in many forms, Swamp Ones were strong but slow, Brindled Ones were fast and nimble, Brownbellies were small but what they lacked in size they made up for in sheer numbers. But the most dreaded of these creatures was the Shadow-Wings. The Largest and most powerful of the Wyverns, Shadow-wings were 100 feet long and black as the night. Stronger than Swamp ones and as nimble as a Brindled ones. All these creature were usually controlled by powerful necromancers.

Both houses feared the wyverns. The great eagles, though powerful were few numbering 206 at their peak. To assist eagles, the two families sought to create winged creatures of their own. Through expieraments and cross breeding. They manage to create a new breed into the world, The Sky Steed. Sky steeds are bigger than regular horses, no smaller than 20 hands when fully grown. The result of two different experaments was two different species, the Whitehall's Pegasus, and the Blackreyne's Thestral.

The age of peace ended after the Long Night. In the Long Night the Ice Demons invaded Sothoros. They came with, not only the dead, but golems made of ice and manage to subjugate the wyverns to do their bidding. The Triumvirant manage to win the war against the deamons, and slaughtered the necromancers. But this victory came with a terribler cost. King Harrian Galador lost his life along with his, brothers, sons, uncles and direct cousins. With the death of their king and his entire male line, Sothoros fell into turnoil.

Most of the great eagles were slain by the Wyverns of the necromancers. When the Galadors died out, all but six of the great eagles fled never to be seen again. The main problem was who would rule in the place of their liege lords. Not surprisingly, the Blackreynes and Whitehalls both made a claim to the throne.

Though the male line of House Galador was extinguished, the female line remained plentiful. His eldest daughter Kylie was married to Lord Boromir Blackreyne, while his second daughter Allanie, was married to Lord Malvous Whitehall. Kylie was the elder of the two sisters, she was buxom and beautiful, sensual and voluptuous. Kylie was willful and serious, with a mind as sharp as the arrows of her bow. Allanie was the youngest of Harrian's children. She was everything her sister was not, short and plump, yet pleasant and sweet. Her cheerful made her beloved around Sothoros. Unlike her elder sister, Allanie was caring and utterly selfless, giving much gold to the commoners and even visiting some of them. Aric Whitehall was her betrothed.

The situation in Sothoros worsened with the arrival of the reborn plague. When the Ice deamons rose the dead, many of those revived corpses were carrying an ancient fungus, When this fungus mixed with wyvern blood the result was a disease that could kill anyone with a single speck. It spread rapidly in area's where plant life was abundant. Because of this Eridon was the first to be hit by the plauge. Not surprisingly the nobility of Eridon had been the least affected and so had time to flee.

Desperate to escape the infection, the Sothori gathered their uninfected people to begin a great Exodus. Both families had refuge points in other parts of the world so they had a place to go should disaster strike.

Both Families had knowledge of Essos and Westeros, the history and what state of being. So when they left, they already had a plan in place. While House Whitehall made for the shadowlands. House Blackreyne chose the Iron Islands of Westeros.

Due to Arnor's status as an island nation, ships were plentiful. The Blackreynes loaded 12,000 ships with weapons, armour, food for the journey and 600,000 men women and children. The Whitehalls had a large city on the southern coast of Essos in the shadowlands. From this city they would start a new nation. The Whitehalls took their entire nobility as well as all their knights and whoever survived the plague. Though they hated each other, the plague had developed a sense of brotherhood between the two families. To help the Whitehalls, the Blackreynes donated 10,000 merchant vessels to their cause. The Eridonians left the homeland with 1,000,000 of their people.

Not everyone left with their liege lords. About one percent of the population refuse to leave the land that they had called home all their lives. "We were born here, we have lived here and so we shall die here." They declared. These people were known as the forsaken. The forsaken were not a doomed as most believed.

A small number of people found themselves immune to the plague. These immunes were changed by the plague, both physically and mentally. This change did not happen over night, it slowly developed over thousands of years. These changes included long arms, sloped foreheads, and brindled skin. The forsaken were now more gorilla-like in appearance unable to breed with other people. While a few manage to retain some form of sanity, slow witted but fierce fighters. Most forsaken became savage beyond the point of madness resorting to cannibalism and other obscenities. These Forsaken became the people that the world was famiiar with.

Over time the remnants of the Arnorian and Eridonian civilizations dissappeared, earthquakes and floods brought down their mighty structures while the Azeron Jungle ripped apart the rest. If one was able to go deep into Sothoros, they would find only unrecognizable ruins overgrown by vegitation. Thus ended the two mighty nations of the Southern Realm.


	4. Landfall

**Landfall**

The Blackreynes decision to settle on the Iron Islands was not last moment act made by Boromir. Careful consideration was put into their choice. Initially they had planned to settle on the Stepstones. They had a great fortress on the island of Bloodstone, so is seemed like the best choice. But the growing power of Ghis and the presense of true dragons, forced them to choose an alternative. As a seafaring people, the iron islands suited them best, and as the smallest of the kingdoms it was also less likely to anger the First Men Kings. The fact that the Ironborn worship a different god and adopted a pirate lifestyle also helped manners

The Sky steeds were immune to the plague but the Blackreynes did not want to draw attention from the peoples of the world. Blackreynes had close bonds with their thestrals and considered them companions. Thestrals had been created to fight the Wyverns, and later the Pegasus'. They would not be used as weapons of war, least of all against a race who had nothing to counter them. So it was decided that the thestrals would remain on the Hydra isles with only a small handful living in Bloodstone. Boromir's younger brother Garalir would over see their care.

The Blackreynes landed on the island of Great Wyk. The ironborn were not keen on having unwanted settlers in their kingdom and attacked the settlers. Unfortunately this pirating race did not find easy prey in the Arnorians. As a warrior cult, the Arnorians were masters of fighting. in a single day, the Ironborn were driven out of Great Wyk and the Blackreynes claimed it for themselves.

The ironborn kings where caught off guard by these newcomers who were not only skilled warriors and sailors. But were also more advanced in every way. Numerous attempt by the Ironborn were made to retake Great Wyk, each attempt ended in failure. After securing Great Wyk, the Blackreynes turned their attention to the neighboring isles. First they invaded Harlaw, then Orkmont, then Pyke. The ironborn fought fiercely but it could not stop the onslaught. One by one the islands fell to House Blackreyne and the inhabitants were eradicated. Once the Iron Islands were secured, Lord Boromir selected six of his most capable leaders to serve as a lord for each island and named himself Warlord of the Isles.

News of the events on the Iron Isles spread like wildfire across Westeros. The numerous lords were not quite sure what to make of this turn of events. On one hand, they were glad to be rid of that nation of raping pirates. But the big question remained on everyones mind. What were the intentions of these colonists. Some wanted to confront them, others wanted to leave them alone. A small number suggested sending spies to find out anything. Eventually it was decided that they would be left to their own devices, but they prepared for war should the colonists prove belligerent.

For forty years, House Blackreyne remained on the silent on their islands. In those forty years, the Blackreynes reshaped the archipelago to suit their conveniance. Before long the Iron Islands was transformed into a highly organized, and efficiantly run society.

The islands with more resources were understandably more developed. Great Wyk, Harlaw and Orkmont each had mining town as well as a port city. Pyke had a port city, but no mining town. The one common thing that all the isles had was numerous fishing villages along the shores. Unlike the settlements of the first men, which were made of wood. All Arnorian settlements were built in stone and protected walls and watchtowers. Having natural masons, this was an easy task. These settlements were fairly large, the fishing villages could house 4,000 people easily, a mining town could hold 40,000 and the port-cities could settle 400,000 citizens. Their castles were also different, Unlike the ringforts and mott-and-bailey castles of the first men, the Blackreynes castles were simple yet strong with crafty designs and were built in the most strategically defensible position. A fort commanded each settlement led by the Master. The Masters answered to the Lord of the Isle.

On the island of Great Wyk, House Blackreyne would build their first seat of power in Westeros, the fortress of Roon. Roon was built in a simular fashion to Pyke Castle. On a jut of rock that thrust into the Sunset Sea. Between the rock and the island is a wide ravine only spanned by a narrow stone bridge. As in the fashion of all Arnorian castles, it only consisted of Large drum keep surrounded by a thick curtain wall.

Once their position had been firmly established, the Blackreynes were ready to introduce themselves to the rest of Westeros. They sent messanger ravens to all the kings in Westeros requesting a meeting in the Isle of Faces. Many were wary, believing that it may be a trap, but in the end curiosity won out. The gathered kings were.

The King of Winter- Stark

The Red King- Bolton

The Barrow King of the Barrowlands

The Marsh King of the Neck

The Bronze King- Royce

The Mountain King of the Vale

The King of the Three Sisters- Sunderland

The King of the Fingers - Shell

The King of the True Men - Shett

The King of the Trident- Fisher

The King of the Rock- Lannister

The King of Fair Isle- Farmen

The Storm King- Durrandon

The King of the Reach- Gardener

The King of the High Tower- Hightower

The King of the Arbor- Redwyne

The High King of Dorne- Yronwood

The King of the Torrentine - Dayne

The King of Stone and Sky- Fowler

The King of the Brimstone- Dryland

The numerous kings of Westeros gathered in the Isle of faces along with members of the children of the forest. The first men did not know how the newcomers would react to their presence so everyone was on guard. Boromir and his bannermen arrived shortly after dressed in lemellar armour. Boromir and his lords gave the kings a bow of respect. But upon seeing the Children of the Forest, they got down on one knee and named them Ancients. Boromir explained the signicicance of the children in their own land.

Between the Arnorians and The Eridonians, the one common thing in their beliefs is the existance of a race of people known as the Ancients. The Ancients are those that came before man. According to Sothori legend, the ancients wielded the hidden arts of earth and water (the world). This made them second only to gods and were treated as such. Then one day they just dissappeared.

Boromir declared that he had no desire for war and only asked to be left in peace. Eager to avoid war the other kings agreed. The new pact was formed on the same isle as the first one.

Over the years House Blackreyne, slowly but surely gained influence in Westeros. They formed strong bonds with the Starks of Winterfell, the Royces of Runestone, the Mudds of Oldstones, and the Yronwoods of Yronwood, while others such as Lannister and Gardener, were somewhat strained. Deren, Boromir's eldest bastard settled in the Westerlands and discovered the mines of Castamere Hill. With help from his father, Deren built a castle around the mine and founded his own sigil. A Red Lion with a forked tail on a silver field House Reyne was born.

Wealth was not a issue for the Blackreynes. Their fortress on Bloodstone was actually a fortified vault where the Blackreynes stored their treasure hoard from Arnor . Their ties with House Reyne added to their wealth. But the Blackreynes were not ones to rely on their treasure hoard, Arnorians like to earn wealth as oppose to being given it. Source of income mostly came in the form of fishing. Arnorian knowledge of harvesting seafood, allowed them to aquire large amouts of seafood to be sold at the market. Iron, Lead and tin was abundant on the isles. For the ironborn these metals were difficult to obtain. But the arnorians had skilled miners and they had improved methods that helped them obtain these resources much easier.

Orlan Blackreyne would marry Margaery Redwyne, the daughter of the Last king of the Arbor. When the king was lost at sea House Blackreyne was able to claim the Arbor as well as the surrounding islands. This caused fuming in House Gardner who wanted to claim the Golden Island for themselves. The Arbor would be the first of many of House Blackreynes conquests. Through carefully placed marraiges, the Blackreynes took the Shield Islands, Fair Isle and Bear Island. These Islands were quickly colonized, soon cultures of both peoples intermingled. The natives learned how to build fortified settlements, fish and build fine ships. The Arnorians in turn learned the art of winemaking. Eventually the natives adopted the Arnorians warrior ways and laws.

When the Blackreynes looked north, they learned of the wildlings. These people left inthe cold merciless far north and trapped by a wall did not sit well with the Blackreynes, so they sentan emissary to eacy of the wildling tribes with an offer to come live on the iron islands. Many were eager to escape the north and readily accepted. But others refuse to surrender their free ways despite the fact that the Blackreyne's assurance that they would not be forced into anything. Roughly 200,000 people north of the wall boarded ships and settled on the Iron island fishing villages. The rest of the wildlings, about 100,000 stayed in the lands beyond the wall.

People under Blackreyne rule were able to go about their daily lives as normal, the only difference was they were under the rule of a house not of the first men. The Blackreynes didn't subjugate their new subject to arnorian ways or customs. They did however enforce their punishments for criminals among the people. The brutallity these laws ensured that crime was kept in check. The Blackreynes kept their militant nature a secret, the last thing theyywante was for their neighbors to think them as warmongering brutes.

The native kings watched the progression of the Blackreynes with wary eyes. Their rule over the Islands of the west coast gave them an iron grip over the western shores. With the newly occupied islands The Blackreynes had made it a point to expand their fleet. One hundred ships guarded Bear Island, and Fair Isle each. The Shield Islands had 200, and the Arbor has 400. despite this show of force, the Blackreynes insisted it was for defence only. Indeed it seemed the the Blackreynes were extremely protective of their holdings.

For a thousand years House Blackreyne coexsisted with the First Men relatively well. They taught the firstmen how to work bronze. This allowed them to make better armour, and shields. They also trained many of the first men in their own style of fighting. Often they would aid their allied houses in dealing with rivals. The Blackreynes fought alongside the Starks against the Bolton Blood Kings, the Royces against their rivals in the Vale, the Yronwoods against the Daynes and Fowlers, and the Mudds would bring the feuding Brackens and Blackwoods to heel. The aid the Blackreynes provided enabled these four houses to become the most powerful Kings in their regions. The Starks and the Mudds would later rule all of the North and Riverlands respectively. over the Years the Blackreynes would marry into the families of Westeros but they kept their ties strongest with the Starks, Royces, Yronwoods and Mudds.

Their relationship with the Children of the Forest was never strained. Though the Arnorians never adopted the old gods, they respected it and each lord had a heart tree planted in their groves. With aid from the childrens magic, these trees were able to bloom on the desolate Iron Islands. Children were frequent guests in the Blackreyne halls.

 **The Andal Invasion**

The time of peace ended when the Andals arrived. The Blackreynes looked at these fair-haired men and immediately sensed trouble. The Blackreynes knew enough about the nature of settlers that these men were here to conquer. They recognised that the religious nature would bring them into conflict with the Children as well as the First Men. The Andals piety reminded the Arnorians of their old enemy. The Blackreynes met with the Children and explained the situation. They told the children that they needed to flee before the Andals caught them and slaughtered them. Many of the Children agreed and fled to the Islands in the west while others fled to the North. But a fair number of them chose to stay to gaurd the weirwood groves such as the Isle of Faces and High Heart.

The Blackreynes, met with all the ruling houses, Stark, Royce, Mudd, Durrandon, Lannister, Gardener, and Yronwood. They warned that they needed to stand together of risk subjurgation to these pagan worshipers. The destruction of their weirwoods trees and the end of the pact with the Children. While the Starks, Mudds and Royces agreed to this alliance, the others decided to deal with the Andals in their own time when they truly were threatened.

The Blackreynes fears came true, the Andals murdered the Children where ever they found them, burnt down their sacred groves and cut down any of the First Men that dared to challenge their supremacy.

The Andal's massacre of the Ancients left the Arnorians burning with rage. They didn't care what gods backed these men, The Children of the Forest would be avenged. Unlike the First men the House Blackreyne was ready for the them. From the day the first Andals left their homeland, the Arnorians prepared for war. The Andals came with iron armour and weapons of steel. But the Arnorians had steel blades as well. When the andals first fought the first men the Blackreynes unveiled the warlike nature to Westeros.

In The Vale, the Andals were already overunning the region, several first men houses were extinguished and most of their kings had been overthrown. Seeing the severity of the situation, The Bronze Kings of House Royce were the only ones to remain unconquered, holding them of for a hundred years. Seeing how dire the situation was, Robar Royce gathered what was left of the First men in the Vale and waged a final campaign against the Andals.

Realising that their position in Westeros was threatened, The andal warlords banded together under an young knight known as Artys Arryn. Artys Arryn's army met Robar Royce's in the Battle of the Seven Stars. Six times the Andals charged and six times the Andals were driven back. On the seventh charge the Andals broke through. Robar Royce rallied his men and charged towards what was believed to be Artys. In the duel that followed Robar slew the knight but it turned out to be a decoy. Artys had led a charge to the rear of Robar's men. In the end Robar was slain and the First men resistance in the vale died with him. The battle of the Seven Stars secured the Andals place in the Vale, Thorty First Men Lords were slain and fourteen houses became extinct.

After the fall of House Royce to the Arryns, was a wake up call for the first men they realized that the Andals were a greater threat than once believed. After the defeat of Robar Royce, many of the first men in the Vale fled to the riverlands. The Blackreynes took command of those remnants and used them in guerilla warfare hitting caravans and harrassing supply lines, and ambushing small Andal armies sent against them. The Arnorian Warlord Caedus Blackreyne taunted Artys Arryn for many moons. Calling him a filthy pagan coward and a hen. "You flew from Robar Royce." He declared. "Will you fly away from me?" Finally the Andal hero to stand it no longer. He would not allow his pride and integrity be questioned by a primitive heathen.

King Artys Arryn met Caedus Blackreyne at the site of the bloody gate would be built. The Andals had gathered 77,777 men and 7 septons for the battle. Caedus Blackreynes joined with the Mudds and commanded 40,000 first men.

Maesters would have you believe that since the Andals had Iron they would be superior to the first men. In truth bronze was a worthy opponent to Iron. Both had their strengths and weaknesses. Bronze was easier to aquire, a simple combination of tin and copper. While Iron is indeed harder than bronze, the difference is a small margin. In fact if worked right, Bronze is stronger than plain iron. Iron was stronger when carbonized and was easier to forge. Bronze was also less brittle, never rusted and was easier to cast. The bronze breastplates of the first men were often covered by layers of leather and linen adding to it's strength.

The Battle of the Moon, was the Andals first engagement against House Blackreyne. They would learn what kind of people the Blackreynes were. Half of the Blackreyne army consisted of 20,000 Arnorian archers, rangers they were called. The Rangers used a Recurve bow. which was lighter and just as powerful as the longbow of the Andals. Their main arrow of choice was the steel tipped bodkin point.

The first men took up a defensive position as the Andals charged. Using the Arnorian's training. The first men formed a phalanx determined to hold firm against the andal attack. As the Andals charged, the rangers unleashed a downpour of arrows. When the Andals were close enough, the phalanx lowered and the rangers loosed their arrows into the faces of the Andals unfortunate front line. Seven times they charged and seven times the Andals were beaten back. Wave after wave of andal knights fell to the Blackreynes rangers.

After the failiure of the seventh charge, the first men whent on the offensive. Slowly but surely they pushed the Andals back. Caedus Blackreyne cut through 77 of the Andals finest knights including Luceon Templeton and Jaime Cobray. King Artys realized with horror that he was going after the septons. The helpless clergymen tried to flee, but it was no use. The Andals looked in horror as Caedus cut 6 of the septons in half with his sword. The seventh suffered a worse fate as Caedus impaled him on a pike and lifted him into the air.

The slaughter of the septons greatly demoralized the Andals army. The more foolish ones hoped that their gods would strike the heathen down. Caedus beat his chest at the air as if daring the seven to do just that. But such a thing never occured. Artys drew Lady Forlorn determined to end this man once and for all. Lady Forlorn was made of Valyrian steel but so was Caedus' own sword Fury. The two rulers clashed, and for a time it seemed to be a stalemate. Artys was a skilled fighter but he was no match for Caedus. With one final swing Caedus beheaded the winged knight.

The sight of their fallen hero, the Andals turned tail and ran for their lives. The First men cheered, but the arnorians were far from finished. Caedus and his men pursued the fleeing Andals and slaughtered them to the man.

The Battle of the Moon was the first of countless catastrophic defeats the andal invaders suffered at the hands of House Blackreyne. King Erreg the kinslayer razed High Heart Hill, burning the wierwoods and slaughtering the children who stayed to defend it. In retribution, twelve year old Jerricoe Blackreyne mutilated him, massacred his men and displayed his impaled corpse on the Blackwater shoreline.

Jerricoe Blackreyne later went on to slay Vorian Vypren at the blue fork. After defeating King Tristifer IV Mudd of the riverlands, Armistead Vance and the armies of the six other warlords who took part in his defeat, were picked off one by one. Until finally Jerricoe and Armistead dueled at the God's Eye. Armistead was killed and impaled.

With the fall of House Mudd, the Blackreynes claimed dominion over the riverlands to prevent further inquiries by Andal warlords. This had been made easy since Jerricoe was married to Talia Mudd. Tristifer IV's only daughter. They seized the Castle of Oldstones and made it their seat of power in Mainland westeros. The Blackreyens tore down the older structures and rebuilt it to suit their needs.

House Blackreyne now ruled all the land between the mountains of the westerlands and the Vale, north of the blackwater rush and south of the neck. With this new fertile territory, House Blackreyne quickly began establishing their permanant foothold on the region. They established the borders, the rivers swarmed with longships, and the settlements fortified. For the first time ever, a Blackreyne took the title of King. Due to their relationship with the sea and having control of Westeros' largest river body, Jerricoe Blackreyne adopted the title of The Trident King.

Jerricoe's son Balthezar would sail with Theon Stark to Andalos. But while Theon was content with raiding, Balthezar took it one step further. He razed every single Andal settlement taking the treasure and anything of even the slightest value. He put every man to the sword and some of his men took the beautiful women as wives though they would never force them in the marraige bed. Orphans were taken to be trained as Blackreyne soldiers.

This string of events led the Andals to give House Blackreyne titles like The Scourge of the Seven, The Stranger's Sons, the Demons of Death. To those who followed the seven, House Blackreyne was evil incarnate. House Blackreyne jokes that the andal god Stranger was on their side. and due to the lack of retribution against them coupled with an endless stream in victories led many Andals to think that maybe just maybe it was true. Arnorian Bastards then rallied and formed a new order in the Blackreyne army The Stranger's Sons. On the Bitter River, 200 Stranger's Sons, faced 777 Warrior's sons. In the battle that followed the Stranger's Sons lost 80 men, the Warrior's Sons were wiped out entirely.

The second battle of the Bitter River was an omen that the Andals could no longer ignore. They tried again and again to defeat the Blackreynes, but every battle ended in humiliating defeat. Their armies were not just defeated, they were annihilated. In every battle the Blackreynes fought against the Andals, the Blackreynes were always outnumbered. They had even razed their homeland. Day and night their septons would pray to the seven to strike them down. The Blackrerynes mocked them. "Shout Louder," they would taunt, "maybe your gods are sleeping, perhaps they are visiting a neighbor on the other side of the world." The prayers of the Andals would go unanswered.

Eventually they halted their attempts to conquer the riverlands and focused on the other kingdoms. Despite successful resistance the Stormlands and Westerlands eventually negotiated a truce with the invaders. They used marraiges to bind the andals to them and even converted to the faith of the Seven. The Reach, despite preparing ages for an andal attack, ended up welcoming them with open arms and also converted to the andal religion. These truces angered the Blackreynes and they now found themselves surrounded by 3 Andal kingdoms.

The only Region unaffected by the andal horde was the North. Every attenpt by the andals to invade the North ended in failure. Finally the andals gave up and allowed the north to live in peace. This led the Blackreynes and Starks to form a near unbreakable bond. Though andals would colonize Dorne, they would never develope much influence in the region. Now Seven Kings fought over Dorne, including the Daynes, Fowlers, Martells, Drylands, Blackmonts and Manwoodys. But thanks to the Blackreynes they would never overcome the power of the Yronwood Bloodroyals

The end Andal invasion marked a new age in Westeros. Gone was the age of the many kings and now Their wer six excluding the kings in Dorne. Stark, the Kings of Winter; Arryn; Kings of Mountain and Vale; Lannister, Kings of the Rock; Durrandon, the Storm Kings, Gardener, Kings of the Reach and Blackreyne, The Trident Kings.


	5. Pegasus Rising

**The Pegasus Rising**

While House Blackreyne settled in Westeros, House Whitehall had a mind to carve their own king in the far east of Essos. Unlike the Blackreynes. House Whitehall was focused purely on conquest. Led by Aric Whitehall their first target was the Shadowlands. House Whitehall descended upon the city of Asshai. Though it was lightly populated, it had some value. They sacked the city and freed the slaves the lived there. Though this liberation was not out of any sympathy, they intended to use the ashai'i slaves as new subjects. After Asshai they marched north conscripting the Shadow men and even looting the corpse city Stygai.

At first House Whitehall considered settling here and making Asshai their new capitol. But in the Mountains of Morn the Whitehalls came face to face with the Dragons of Essos. The Eridonians looked in awe at these magnificent beasts. With fire that could melt stone and large enough to swallow a elephant whole. The Dragons wrecked havok on the Eridonians. Unwilling to let this stop them, the Aric unleashed their Pegasus on them. The Pegasus proved to be a formidable against the dragons, though their featherblades could not pierce the dragon hides, some did go into the dragon's eyes. It was the equivilant to getting blinded by crushed glass. The Pegasus' would then drive their 3 foot long horns into the necks of the dragons, punctering vital arteries. Pegasus became victims to smaller dragons who were able to match them in speed. They clamped the jaws on the winged horses and refuse to let go. In the end ot the dragon crisis, hundreds ofdragons layed dead, but the price of victory was steep for House Whitehall. A fifth of their pegasus had been slain leaving many of their seasoned Paladin knights without mounts.

After facing the Dragons, Aric led his people and marched north seeking a better place to settle. They sacked the city of Carcosa and subjugated it's people. the sorcerers who lived their were given a choice, Serve House Whitehall or perish, though they had great power, the sorcerers feared the Pegasus of their conquerors. The sorcerers showed them the path out of the shadowlands and into the Land of the Shrykes. The lands of Far-East-Essos was inhabited by half humans and savage people. To House Whitehall it was ripe for conquest.

This land though dangerous was fertile and ideal for Eridonian lifestyle. As they explored this territory, the Whitehalls stumbled upon the City of the Winged Men. The Whitehalls would of normally found any people who wasn't normal to be gastly. But the fact that these people could fly intrigued them. They decided to make the city their new capitol and named it Skyfall a name that the winged people took a liking to. With a capitol established, the Whitehalls now sought to rid the land of the Lizard-men (The Shrykes). But instead of simply wiping them out, The Whitehalls made a sport of it known as the Great Hunt. Every week, Eridonian nobles hunted the shrykes on horseback seeing who could slay the most. Before long, the shrykes were driven out of the homelands.

With the fleeing of the shrykes, the Eridonians could now begin to build permenant settlements on their new homeland. They build a cities near the nearby Bleeding Sea and the Hidden Sea. farms and villaiges were established on any place with a river. The city of Skyfall thrived under the Joint rule of the winged people and the Eridonians.

But the Whitehalls were not content with this and desired more. they learned that the winged people feared their neighbors to the north the K'Dath. These people committed such atrocities that the Eridonians felt obligated to put them under heel. So they gathered their knights and invaded K'Dath. Lacking a proper army, the K'Dathi were quickly overrun and thousands became servants to the Eridonian nobility. K'Dath city and Bonetown came under the rule of selected Eridon Earls and the entire territory was added to the Whitehall kingdom now named Alvion.

Seeking to continue their success at K'Dath, the Whitehalls decided to look further north. That is when they came across the Grey Waste. The cold barren expanse was almost enough to deterr them from going further. But some were curious as to what lay beyond. Sorem Whitehall led a small expedition of 1,000 men across the grey coloured desert. Eventually they came to the great forest region of Mussovy. Realizing the value of such a large deposit of wood Sorem decided that Mussovy would become Eridonian Territory. Upon exploring the forest, the adventurers came across the demon hunters. It didn't take long for the two groups to befriend each other. Sorem and his party decided to spend a year in the region to discover it's secrets. In that year they took part in the 'demon hunt', slaying many shapechangers and other strange beasts. After a year, Sorem gave the hunters an offer to join their newly growing kingdom. He promised them lordship over the region and the finest equipment that Eridonians had to offer. The Huntsmen accepted and returned with Sorem to Alvion where they were made Eridon nobility.

Sorem was more determined than ever, they had to have Mossovy. Unfortunately, the grey waste stood in the way. So Sorem gathered the captured sorcerers together with a deal, if they made the grey waste fertile, they would be granted their freedom. Realizing the chance, the sorcerers agreed. It was gruesome and bitter wrk, but within five years, the sorcerers manage to turn the grey waste into a vast grassland. They even created a river that started at the bleeding sea and extended deep into the former desert. Once their work was completed Sorem carried out his promise and sent them to the city of Qarth where they joined the warlocks there. A small number however had grown accoustomed to Eridonian culture and ended up adopting it as their own. So instead of fleeing to Qarth, these few chose to stay and serve House Whitehall.

House Whitehall now ruled a kingdom that stretched from the southernmost part of the Hidden Sea to the coastline of the Shivering Sea. The already existing settlements had grown into large cities and others had been built. After the Eridonians annexed Mussovy, they named the Demon hunters the lords of the region and a city was built right on the edge of the vast forest. From Mussovy, they marched west and siezed the kingdom of N'Ghai. Eridonian lords would ride into the cannibal sands and take it's inhabitants into servitude.

Over the next 1,000 years, Alvion became wealthy and prospered enjoying an era of peace. Much of the kingdom had been transformed into vast farmland. These farms, each maintained by large peasant towns produced all manner of crops. Near Skyfall, along the banks of the Hidden Sea, the Whitehalls constructed their seat of power. The Great Castle of Eridon, named in honor of their lost homeland.

The conquered peoples slowly became part of House Whitehall's Peasantry. They were closely watched, forbidden from practicing their barbaric ways and were kept in line by the presense of brutal Earls. Lacking proper education, their individual cultures were forgotten and they began following the culture of the Eridonians. A few rebellions occured, but they were quickly and brutally put down often they would slaughter the adults and forcibly 'educate' the surviving infants. In half a millenium, all evidence of the savage cultures had been erased from the minds of the new Alvion peasantry and their obediance was now absolute. Most of these men would become martyran fanatics as they were good for little else. It is worth mentioning that the pure Eridonian peasants were given better treatment than the conquered peasants. Albiet the difference it minor at best.

Knowing they needed to make ties with their neighbors in order to establish trade and commerce. The problem was that their weren't many developed kingdoms near Alvion and even Alvion itself had been lightly populated with 'normal' looking people. The only civilized kingdom near Alvion was the Golden Empire of Yi Ti. Fortunately, Yi-Ti was significantly more developed for the age and that made it easier for Alvion to develope relations with them. With ties to Yi-Ti established, Alvion's prosperity increased.

 **The Zorse War**

Unfortunately, peace in the realms of men cannot last and it wasn't long before a storm founds it's way to Alvion. This storm had a name, the Jogos Nhai. With a nation as prosperous as Alvion, it was only inevitable that it would catch the eye of their nomadic neighbor to the west. The Jogos Nhai possessed a beligerence that would of disturbed House Blackreyne. When the Eridonians first set eyes on them, they couldn't help but laugh at their ridiculous physique. Bow legged and squat with small faces and dark skinned. They were hardly intimidating compared to the tall, strapping and comely Eridonian nobility. But it was their pointed skulls that the Eridonians found highly amusing and at the same time revolting. espacially when you consider that how hard it was to tell their genders apart. Despite this, the Eridonians took a keen interest in their mounts. The zorses of the Jogos Nhai became a fascination for their knights. Eridon knights were in need of new mounts, since they had arrived in essos, they had lost all their destriers, and the Paladin knights had taken to using coursers as a substitute.

At first, House Whitehall chose to ignore them and focus on their own affairs. For a time it was enough. The Jogos Nhai were focused on wealthier kingdoms. Most notable of these Are the Patrimony of Hyrkoon and Yi Ti. Compared to these great powers, Alvion is but a young upstart province, with little wealth. However as Avlion grew in size and prospered, the zorse riders now looked to Alvion with a gleam in their eyes.

The Jogos Nhai had been in a war with Yi Ti. After the Jhattar Zhea Zorseface defeated the vast army of Yi Ti Emperor Lo Bu, they now turned their attention to Alvion, Yi Ti's long time ally.

The Jogos Nhai began their offensive with a series of raids by the numerous clans. But unlike Hyrkoon and Yi Ti, Alvion is prepared. The warbands swoop in and raid the numerous villages near the Alvion border. But afterwards as they are returning to their homeland, the warbands find their way blocked by the Eridonian cavalry. The Jogod Nhai are fierce fighters and even better riders. But when it comes to cavalry warfare, the Whitehalls had no peer. The fact that the Jogos Nhai were unarmoured and had no fixed line didn't help matteres either. Eridonian knights cut them down like a scythe with wheat. Dozens of Jogos Nhai warbands rode into Alvion and none return.

As the war dragged on Zhea grew worried as the number of warbands decreased and sent her finest scouts to see what has become of them. One scout returned with e dreadful report. The first thing he had found was that many of the Pilgrim Knights now rode zorses, going further in he found the remnants of the warbands. The sight before him sent fear up his spine.

Every warband had been captured and dealt with in a very unique and cruel way. The males had been slaughtered and the females in the warbands were put into camps. In these camps Jogos Nhai females were paired with conquered peasants for breeding. The babies were then taken to eridonian peasants who were chosen as foster parents. These children would not have the pointed heads of their mothers and raised to be loyal and obediant. Once the females was no longer able to produce children they were executed.

Enraged by the treatment of her people at the hands of the Eridonians, Zhea began to plan a campaign of vengence. Her target, the capital city of Skyfall. Using the enslaved Yi Tish, Zhea constructed an enormous bronze statue inthe form of a pegasus. This statue was sent to Alvion as a peace offering and a gesture of surrender. The Whitehalls took the gift without a second thought and brought into Skyfall. Little did they know that within the statue was Zhea and 100 of her fiercest warriors. On the night they entered the city. Zhea and her warriors climbed out of the horse and under a new moon, they slew the guards, and opened the gate. The moment Zhea gave the signal, 10,000 Jogos Nhai wariors rode into the city and proceeded to sack it. The sack of Skyfall left thousands dead and thousands more taken captive. But the greatest grievance was the deaths of the winged people. The Jogos Nhai slaughtered every last one of them. For House Whitehall the sack led to the deaths of much of the family including the King Farlow Whitehall, all but one of his sons and most of the counts and elder nobles.

The Sack of Skyfall sent a shockwave throughout Alvion. The death of their kings and most of his heirs and many senior nobles was a devastating blow. Zhea returned to the Plains with new slaves to serve her. Unfortunately while the Sack of Skyfall was the greatest victory they achieved, it was also their greatest mistake. Zhea expected the new King to be rash arrogant anda man of action. The truth however was far from it. Zheanew opponent was none other than Hammond Whitehall.

Much of the Eridonian ladies and knights had been in Eridon Castle attending a feast held by King Farlow's fourth eldest son Hammond. Of all of Farlow's sons Hammond was the most dangerous. Compared to his elder brothers he appeared unremarkable. Lean and and quick while his brothers had been stocky and strong. Despite this Hammond was Zhea's equal in cunning and unequaled in ruthlessness. it is said that he forsaw the sack of Skyfall and ensured that the nobility he favoured was with him while it happened. Namely his sisters, female cousins, younger brother, the knights, and the ladies.

When word reached Hammond of the sack of Skyfall, the Eridonians were burning with anger. Hammond however was secretly thrilled and decided the time was right to launch his counter attack. Hammond acknowledged that the perfect way to defeat such a warlike race is to counter with the tactics of an equally warlike people. And House Whitehall happened to know one all too well. Hammond decided to take a page from House Blackreyne's tactics

Hammond knew that the Jogos Nhai lived in small bands so he divided his pilgrim knights into equally small groups to search and destroy. As they were not bound by the same code of Honor as Paladin Knights, they were able to use underhanded tactics to achieve their goals. The Pilgrims slept during the day and rode in the cover of night. They took each clan by surprise. Some even dressed in their attire so other warbands would ignore them. Along the way they discovered the captured nobles of skyfall as well as thousands of slaves from Hyrkoon and Yi-Ti, every one gladly joined the Eridonians.

To counter this Zhea ordered her people to melt away deep into their homelands. Hammond then declared that he would raise a large force to invade the Plains of the Jogos Nhai and eliminate Zhea once and for all. For a whole year Hammond mustered a huge army numbering two hundred thousand strong. Most of which was made up of conscripted peasants. This force was assembled at the border of the Shrykelands and the Plains. Zhea responed by gathering all the warbands together into a force of equal size. Zhea assumed that Hammond was going to attempt what Lo Bu had tried many years before.

But Zhea had been decieved, Hammond's great host was but a diversion. The real invasion force was assembled in absolute secrecy in the north. Zhea believed her northern borders to be safe since the Cannibal Sands seperated her land from Alvion. But Hammond was about to do the unthinkable. He was going to cross the Cannibal Sands. The great host was led by Hammond's younger brother Verden. Hammond crossed the now inhabited desert and crossed into the northern Plains. Once he and his host had finished the crossing, hesent a raven to verden to march on Zhea.

As soon as Zhea saw the great host moving she quickly moved to intercept. Zhea had decided to attack them at night thinking that this host cound not perform a fight in night time like their small mounted forces could. Unfortunately a scout spotted Zhea's host approaching and was able to warn them about the attack. The Eridonian hosthad surrounded their huge camp with trench and spikes. A rope fence was made meant to trip the zorses. When they heard the thundering of hooves. It was the telltale sign of the approaching Jogos Nhai army. The Zorse riders galloped right into the fence stumbling and flinging them into the awaiting circle of spikes. many zorses or their riders were impaled. Seeing their calvalry charge fail the jogos Nhai dismounted and attacked on foot. Twice they charged the defensive ring until finally breaking through on the third change.

The first soldiers they would meet were the Martyrans. The mad savagery in which the Martyrans fought took the Jogos Nhai by force. One account reported of a martyran who had lost both of his arms so he ran forward and chewed into the neck of the fisrt Jogos Nhai he could reach, the martyran manage to kill the man before succumbing to his injuries. Martyrans literally had to be beheaded inorder to stop them quickly otherwse they were able to kill at least a dozen enemies before being slain. The Battle of the Southern Plains raged all through the night. Neither side gaining a true upper hand. Zhea confronted Verden who was ddisgiused as hs brother. Zhea was a fierce warrior and the two fought. "It is a pity we face each other as enemies." She told him. "I would of taken you as a consort."

Verden laughed and shook his head. "Sorry Zorseface," he quipped. "I only like women."

This enraged her and she attacked him with new vigor. eventually she manage to slash him in the stomach and removed his helm. "You are nor Hammond," she said angrily.

Verden laughed, "I know that, but you didn't."

"Where is your brother?"

"Away."

"Well the coward will never see his little brother again."

Verden laughed a coughed blood, "it was worth it to seen you cfail your people this day."

Zhea knelt down and and pulled him up. "What do you mean?"

Despite the pain he pulled himself, and whispered in her ear. "If you are here, who is guarding the north?"

It was then that she realized Hammonds deception. gripped by panic she order her men to retreat. The Eridonians were victorious loosing 30,000 men to Zhea's 50,000. Verden died laughing.

While Zhea had been busy with Verden, Hammond and his invasion force of 100,000 knights swept through the Plains of the Jogos Nhai. he cut down the undefended clans following his usual procedure. By the time Zhea confronted him, most of her people had been slain or subjugated. She knew that she had to stop him here of her people and her land would be added to the Kingdom of Alvion. Unfortunately, a fourth of her army had been lost in the battle with Verden. Though she still outnumbered Hammond's force. The Eridonian Knights were superior riders and fighters to her own warriors.

Zhea must have known that the situation was grim and decided that death was better than servitude so in a final act of defiance she led the remnants of her army in a desperate charge. Zhea's warriors were in an arrowhead formation. hammond divided his army in three parts, 30,000 Pilgrims on the right flank, 30,000 on the left and his 40,000 Paladins in the middle in the form of a V. An Arrowhead charge is strong in the front but weak in the flanks and Hammond intended to exploit it. The the point of the arrow clashed with the paladins, The Zorse riders were hit from the flanks by the pilgrim knights. The Battle of the Northern plains lasted only 20 minutes. The Jogos Nhai were overrun and trampled by Hammond's heavy horse. Zhea was allowed to pass through in order to duel Hammond. In the duel that followed. Hammond beheaded the Jhattar and placed it on a pole for all to see. Despite the death of their chief, the remaining Jogos Nhai fought to the last warrior. In the end 150,000 Jogos Nhai lost their lives, Hammond only lost 10,000

The Death of Zhea Zorseface marked the end of the Jogos Nhai. With most of their warriors dead and no Jhats remaining, the remainder of the nomads surrendered to House Whitehall. As with the others Hammond made no exeptions. The men were slain, the women sent to the camps and the children were to be trained as martyrans or breeders. The zorses Became the mounts of the Pilgrim Knights while the Paladins now used coursers.

House Whitehall gained the praise and respect from Hyrkoon and Yi Ti for eradicating the Jogos Nhai. Both kingdims showered the Whitehalls with gifts. In Hyrkoon, the women fight and the men were eunuch workers. Only 1 in every 100 were selected to become one of the Great Fathers. So the Whitehalls made an unusual request. They wanted 40 out every 100 of their men. The Patrmony gladly accepted, in exchange House Whitwehall helped elimitate the wild men of the bone mountains. Often taking them back to Alvion to become peasants.

With the fall of the Jogos Nhai, the Plains they had called home for centuries were annexed by Alvion. Adding the plains of the Jogos Nhai doubled House Whitehalls territory and allowed them to do business with The Patrimony of Hyrkoon. Hammond tasked his sorcerers with making the Plains suitable for farming. Avlion gained millions of new subjects, many came from Hyrkoon and Yi Ti so they chose to return to their homeland. Others however chose to stay and serve the Whitehalls. Due to their more civilized nature, many of these people joined the Eridonian nobility in time. House Whitehall was now the most powerful kingdom in Far-East Essos with land and a population surpassing that of it's neighbors.


	6. Arnor vs Andalos

**The Andal/Arnorian Wars**

In the years leading up to the Doom Of Valyria, the houses of Blackreyne and Whitehall thrived. The Blackreyne's Kingdom now renamed Troyad became wealthy prospered like never before under their reign. Proper settlements were built in accordance to Arnorian standards (being walled and made of stone). Bridges were built to span the multiple rivers that dominated the region. Troyad became a refuge for First Men that refuse to live under andal rule. Women of lords who wanted better opportunities also fled to Arnor.

Under the Blackreyne rule, the lords in Troyad found their power drastically reduced, most notably in their military manpower. In order to avoid confusion sons of lords were now given the title of Master. The commoners found themselves with improved living conditions. As oppose to farmers living isolated from other farmers. They were moved into a Farming communes surrounded by vast farmland. The same was done for the fishermen who now lived in fishing villages. As with all Blackreyne settlements, these were built entirely in stone with high walls watchtowers, trench and spike. Troyad Lords were given rule over either a fishing villaige or farming commune. The Lords were expected to protect, manage and maintain the settlements they now governed. The Lords were also expected to have a firm but fair hand, whip those who do wrong and never abuse their power. Mistreatment of the smallfolk was not tolerated as the Blackreynes claim, 'The strong make plenty the weak make little and the dead make nothing.'

The wildlings manage to settle in the Iron isles well enough. The islands of Pyke, Blacktyde, Saltcliff and Old Wyk, were populated solely by Wildlings, though. The Blackreynes still retained their hold on Great Wyk, Harlaw and Orkmont, due to their resources. The mines had long since been drained and the mined metals were melted into bricks ansd stored. The now empty mines acted as vaults for their plunder.

But things were hardly peaceful. Troyad was in the center of Westeros, which meant that it was caught in the middle of nearly every conflict that occurred. Being warlike people, the culture of the Blackreynes seemed to go against everything the feudalistic Andals stood for. The idea of previliged commoners, Women equal to men and their warrior society dumbfounded the Andals. Blackreynes never took septons, septas believing them to be untrustworthy. Maesters were never accepted either since the Blackreynes preferred to train their own teachers. Many of these teachers were dwarves, in fact every dwarf child was taken to be trained as a teacher. Blackreynes were never ones to waste a life.

The Andals were still bitter about their disasterous defeats at the hand of the Blackreynes as well as the loss of many of their heroes. The Gardners, Lannisters, and Arryns all wanted to carve a piece of Troyad for their own. The Durrendons are able to work peacefully with the Blackreynes, but the Blackreyne's friendship with the Yronwoods make this peace strained at best. The only true allied kingdom the Blackreynes ever had were the Starks and the North.

Andal warriors under the guise of brigands attacked rivermen where ever they found them. With the innumerable raids conducted by the Andals the people of Troyad begged their Blackreyne overlords to protect them. The Blackreynes replied, "we shall not protect what you hold dear. You will, and we will show you how." Thus began the induction of the rivermen into Arnorian society. The rivermen were mostly fishermen and farmers. So these men were taught the art of the trident and sickle respectively. At first the Andals laughed at the idea of farmers and fishermen being fighters. The laughing stopped when they attempted their usual raids on the villaiges and farms. The Andals realized that with the proper training and the right technique A farmer with a sickle or scythe proved to be a formidable fighter. Fishermen would ensnare an enemy on his net then finish him with a trident.

Through a union Houses of Braken and Blackwood. A Bastard named Benedict Rivers caught the attention of the Blackreynes twith his stern but wise manner. Being a Bastard Benedict had gone to train with his overlords becoming one of the deadliest swords in the riverlands. Benedict would eventually gain the support of his parents houses and embarked on a campaign against the andal raiders. evendefeating a number of lords and a Faith militant force. In recognition for his services, he was named Benedict of House Justinian. When he wed Cella Blackreyne, he was given Oldstones. Under Lord Benedict's rule, House Justinian rose quickly becoming one the most powerful vassals of the Blackreynes.

The conflict between the Houses Blackreyne, and it's andal rivals became known as the Andal Arnorian wars. It comprised of three conflicts The Western war, the Sist.r War and the Teague Uprising. These conflicts would last for over three thousand years and extent to nearly every part of Westeros. The first conflict, the Western War was against the Gardeners and Lannisters.

 **The Western War**

In the Westerlands, King Tyrion II Lannister marched his troops through the Golden Tooth to conquer Troyad. He met early success gaining a number of victories. In the first half of the war, it seemed that Tyrion would succeed. King Derethor Blackreyne responded with an massive counter attack. Instead of marching on the Westerlands formidable mountains. He sailed against the Westerlands vulnerable coast. Once they made landfall the Blackreynes targeted the wealthy gold mines in the Westerlands. Their prizes included the Golden Tooth, the Pendric Hills and Nunn's Deep. Numerous minor mines like the Crag were also captured and drained of their rersources. Heavily guarded caravans came from these places and sent to either Troyad or the Iron Islands depending on the location.

Though the Reynes of Castamere were a cadet branch of the Blackreynes. Derethor knew that Castamere had to be 'captured' to prevent their relatives from being alienated by their neighbors. Derethor made a grand show of 'sacking' Castamere when in truth the Reynes negotiated with them. The Blackreynes would empty Castamere and take the gold to Great Wyk. In addition to the mines the Blackreynes also sacked the settlements along the coast. One by one they fell, Banefort, Kayce, Feastfires, Tarbeck hall, and Crakehall. Finally, two years after the beginning of the Golden War, Derethor sacked Lannisport. It should be noted that when the Blackreynes sacked something they were very thorough about it. All gold and weapons were taken naturally. But no woman or child is harmed, and no buildings were burned as fire woud hinder their ability to enter and depart the city quickly.

In the Reach, the incompetant King Garth X Gardener decided to take the wealthy Arbor in order to posess it's famed wines. With a fleet of 200 warships and an invasion force of 50,000 men Garth succeeded in taking the Island. This victory would turn into a massive blunder. The taking of their prized Island in the south enraged the Blackreynes and they prapared to teach the Gardeners a lesson.

House Blackreyne gathered the western fleet for his attack on the Reach. The fleet was divided into two parts, the first one consisting of solely of longships would raise havoc in the rivers. The Second part, made up of the larger galleys razed the coastline. All along the Mander, Honeywine, Cockleswhent and Blue Byrne rivers. The first fleet sacked every settlement. The Goldengrove, Tumbleton, Bitterbridge, Grassy Vale, Ashford, Longtable, Cider Hall, Honeyholt and Brightwater Keep became victims of Blackreyne raids. As the first fleet terrorized the Mander, the Second fleet was busy striking down the settlements in the Coast. The Blackreynes sacked Old Oak, Bandallon, Blackcrown, Three Towers and Sunflower Hall.

Finally both fleets converged on their primary targets, Highgarden and Oldtown. Oldtown managed to repell the Blackreynes three times brfore the fatal fourth attack. The Hightower was able to repell every attack before the frustrated Blackreynes decided to just lay siege to the massive. Highgarden however was a different manner, The seat of House Gardener fell in a matter of minutes.

So the war continued for two thousand years. Though the Arbor and the Gold mines were well defended by Blackreyne swords. Places like Fair Isle, the Shield Islands and the numerous settlements in the Troyad, Reach and Westerlands would shift hands more times than could be counted. Heroes on both sides fought and died. Learning from their mistakes during the invasion, The andals only fought small skirmishes with the Blackreynes never committing a full force to any battlefield. They would attack tiny raiding partied with huge numbers earning them many successes albiet small ones. It is noted that while House Blackreyne was the common enemy, none of the andal kingdoms were ever able to stand together for long. House Durrendon eventually joined the war on the Blackreyne's side.

It finally came to an end when Titus Blackreyne later known as Titus the Trickster. turned the kingdoms of the Reach and Rock against each other. Once the Reach was surrounded, the Gardeners entered negotiations with the Blackreynes for a truce. A truce the Blackreynes readily accepted. All the original holdings were returned to their lords and the Blackreynes withdrew from both the Reach and the Westerlands. The Western War finally came to a close.

 **The Sisters War**

Peace in Troyad would only last a few centuries before House Blackreyne would be plunged into another war during the Rape of the Sisters. The group of Islands known as the Three Sisters was regarded as the eastern equivilant of the Iron Islands before the Blackreynes. A haven and base for pirates and smugglers. The Starks had grown tired of the sistermen constantly harassed their eastern shore and the City of White Harbor which provided the North with much needed income. So they led an invasion of the islands in what became known as the Rape of the Three Sisters. The invasion was a success and the North added the Three Sisters to their kingdom. In their desperation The Sistermen sent an emmissary to King Mathos II Arryn with a plea for aid. If the Arryns drove back the Northmen, they would submit to Arryn Rule. King Mathos II accepted and sent a force of a hundred ships to the three sisters. The Sister's War had begun.

The War of the Sisters marked a momenteous event in Blackreyne history. House Blackreyne had a fair share of ruling Queens, but this would be the first time a Queen would lead them to war. Her name was Nyra Blackreyne. She was considered a harsh beauty with knee length dark brown hair and pale blue eyes. Despite her beauty, Nyra was clever deceitful and seductive considered more dangerous than any Blackreyne male. Nyra intended to do the impossible, she was going to break the Eyrie.

Queen Nyra launched a counterattack on the Vale. Before Nyra the Blackreynes tried to take the Bloody Gate Twelve times and twelve times they had failed. Nyra realized that she would not win the war this way so she adopted a new strategy. Once again she marched an army on the Bloody Gate. But instead of attacking Nyra set up a line of circumvellation. This investment included double trenches and high earthen ramparts topped with archer plateforms and watchtowers. To the Arryns it seemed that the Blackreynes were trying to trap keep them in the mountains.

This 'siege' on the Bloody Gate was a diversion. While the Arryns were focused on holding the Bloody Gate, Nyra had sent a second army around Westeros to the Vale's vulnerable eastern coast. Once the fleet reached the Vale it divided into three parts. The first army sailed to the Gulltown looting the city aand siezing every ship they could get their hands on. The Second army sailed to the sisters where they began a repetition of what happened to the ironborn thousands of years ago. These attacks drew the Arryn forces away from the third army. The third army was the largest and it's target was the Vale of Arryn Valley. When they landed their path was blocked by a series of hills dominated by Longbow Hall. The landing force easily defeated the small garrison and drove it back into the castle. After Longbow Hall they started cutting a bloody path across the valley.

The Mountain Clans were still fond of the memory of what the Blackreynes did to the Arryns and were more than happy to assist in any way they could. They showed Nyra secret goat paths through the Mountains of the Moon enabling her to bypass the Bloody Gate. Disguised as Vale knights Nyra's Stranger's Sons were able to enter the castle providing detailed information about Nyra's incursion in the valley. In the dead of night, they killed the guards on duty and opened the gates for Nyra's army enabling them to enter the Gates of the Moon.

The Blackreynes worked to keep the Gates of the Moon in their possession, They doubled the size of the castle and improved on it's already impressive defences. Among these defences where ones built to drive back an attack from the Eyrie. Additional fortifications wer built on the cliffs that flanked the fortress. A large storehouse was built filled with grain and other foods enabling it to withstand a long siege. In less than a year, The Gates of the Moon became the strongest fortress in the Vale.

After the Fall of the Gates, the Blackreynes laid siege to the Eyrie. The kin of Osgood and Oswin Arryn were now trapped in the Giant's Lance. Once word had reached them about the fall of the Gates they ceased their attack on the North and marched to liberate their home.

The Eyrie was defended by 500 men and 300 more in the three waycastles that defended it. It's granary had enough food and water to withstand a ten year siege, even longer without a garrison. However, nobody knew when winter would come and they could not stay in the Eyrie when it did. Osgood gathered 30,000 men and attcked the Gates of the Moon, Arya Arryn sent out 700 men to attack the rear of the fortress. Nyra Blackreyne led the defense with 6,000 men garrisoned in the castle. Despite being outnumbered the Blackreynes fought well and the defenses did their job.

When Battle of the Gates ended 15,000 Arryns were slain along with Osgood Arryn and the 700 men that Arya had sent to assist. Oswin decided to simply lay siege to the Gates of the Moon. This became known as the Two-Siege campaign. For four years this stalemate dragged on and neither side would buckle. Then Oswin recieved something that made hisheart sink, a White Raven. Summer was over and winter had begun. If this seige continued anylonger his family would freeze in their impregnable fortress. Oswin sent an emissary to Nyra negotiatinf a peace treaty. He would withdraw from the Three Sisters if she lifted the siege. Nyra agreed and the Blackreynes withdrew from the Vale.

The Sister War ended in a stalemate. Neither the Vale nor the North owned the Three Sisters. The Blackreyne invasion of the Three Sisters, left the islands in ashes. The sistermen were so broken that they didn't practice pirating for many centuries. Instead they focused on trying to rebuild the lives that the Blackreynes destroyed. They never forgot and they would never forgive.

 **The Teague Uprising**

House Blackreynes greatest challenge was rose a few hundred years after the Sister War. It began with a powerful, upstart andal family from the hills of andalos. They are deeply religious and extremely ambitious and possess a deep seething hatred for anyone who didn't follow the seven. Many of it's members had been among the Most Devout and even High Septons in the past. Their name was House Teague.

House Teague was the only one of the Great Families of Andalos to escape the rampage of Balthezar Blackreyne's purge of Andalos. Because of this their hatred for House Blackreyne was absolute. The Teagues led other escaped andals to the Rhoyne. They would later go on to form a mercenary company fighting for the great Valyrian House Belaerys. House Belaerys paid the Teagues handsomely for their services. During the Andal/Arnorian wars, The Teagues successfully capture several of House Blackreyne's treasure convoys. They used this treasure to expand their army in Essos. As time passes their company got larger and larger to the point where they had 30,000 sellswords at their command. They also conscripted other enemies of the Blackreynes, including ironborn, sistermen, convicts and pirates.

With their forces in the east ready, Theo Teague traveled to Westeros with an army of septons. Their utter devotion to the Faith of the Seven attracted the attention of the Most Devout many worshippers and soon hundreds attended their cermons all across westeros. Eventually their zealous nature allowed them to quickly rise among the Most Devout, quickly taking over the Council entirely. As their power grew, their zealotry became clairvoyant. Their supporters adopted an aggressive stance and swelled to the hundreds of thousands. A single septon could be seen preaching to a crowd of tens of thousands at any on point. Theo Teague appointed his eunuch brother Humphrey Teague as the new High Septon, a decision that was welcomed with open arms. Many of the followers House Teague gathered became septons and septas, but without a doubt, the dominant power was the Faith Militant.

Most of their manpower came from the Reach, Vale, Stormlands and Westerlands who secretly funded House Teague making the family obscenely rich. But a few came from the North, Dorne and even Troyad. Many lords wanted to go back to a feudalistic society and were eager to join. Among these Houses were the Vances, the Vyprens and the Whitehills. In the Teague Uprising, the Faith Militant reach the apex of their power. With 10,000 Warrior's Sons and 250,000 Poor Fellows. The Faith Militant, knew that their poor fellows in their condition would get slaughtered if the faced the hardened Blackreyne warriors, so for the next ten years the Warrior's Sons were tasked with training the poor fellows how to fight. It was a lackluster job but the Poor Fellows were now capable of putting up a decent fight.

All across southern Westeros the Faith Militant raided armories in every region, taking weapons and armour wherever they could find them. The Kings did make 'attempts' to stop their raids but in truth they aided the Faith Militant as discreetly as they could without incurring the Blackreynes wrath. In truth these were supply deals made to look like raids. They even send their most seasoned warriors to help train the Poor Fellows. As these kingdoms were eager to get revenge on the Blackreynes.

The Teagues began their campaign during the reign of Waldorf Blackreyne. Waldorf the First later known as Waldorf the Worst, is considered by far the weakest ruler House Blackreyne ever had. He displayed such great misrule that no Blackreyne or Arnorian would ever take his name ever again becoming forbidden to do so. Like all his relatives, he was a skilled warrior and sailor. But he refused to hone his skills after he became king. He ate and drank his heart away to the point where he weighed 36 stone. Only his muscular limbs saved him from being immobile. He was cocky and arrogant to no level. He believed in arnorian superiority over all else to the point . Waldof's bigotry nearly cost House Blackreyne it's friendship with House Stark. Waldorf heavily taxed the people filling the Blackreyne coffers with mounds of gold. He also tried to forge relations with the Andals even converting to the Faith of the Seven. None of his actions were approved by his family.

The Teague invasion force of 50,000 landed in the southeastern corner of Troyad. This place had three hills and here The Teagues and the Faith decided to build their seat of power named The Starpoint. Starpoint was really three strongholds built on the three hills. They were built in the shape of heptagons with seven huge towers at each corner and high walls. The castles were named Father's Fort, Warrior's Ward, and Smith's Stronghold.

Led by Torrence Teague, the father of Theo and Humphrey, they were soon joined by the Faith Militant. The massive army began cutting a bloody path across Troyad overwhelming the small armies sent against them. Meanwhile the Teague fleet sailed up the blackwater rush smashing the Arnorian longships patrolling it. Waldorf sent a force of 20,000 to stop them. The two armies met at Paxton, a large town situated in the northeastern shore of the God's Eye.

The Arnorian Army led by Waldorf's eldest son Barrigan fought well and manage to hold off the Poor Fellows. But through a brilliant maneuver by Torrence, the Teagues outflanked Barrigan's forces, with ships in that had arrived to the God's Eye. Barrigan and all 20,000 men were slain. Torrence was victorious but at a great cost. 80,000 Poor Fellows had fallen to the Arnorian warriors. It was a momentous day in westeros. For the first time in their history, a full strength Blackreyne army had been defeated.

This maked the first of a string of lossed for House Blackreyne. One by one the major settlements fell. Duskendale, Maidenpool, Riverrun, Seagard all fell to the Teagues. Soon House Teague controled most of Troyad. A second Blackreyne army of 30,000 led by Galivan Blackreyne marched against them. But Torrence manage to surround them at the cape of Eagles. Battle of the Cape was a repetition of the Battle of Paxton. The Arnorians slaughtered to a man while Torrence lost his life and 90,000 men, most of whom were poor fellows.

Meanwhile, the Teague navy smashed numerous Blackreyne fleets to gain control of Fair Isle and the Shield Islands and even into the Iron islands thenselves. The Islands of Blacktyde, Saltcliff and Old Wyk became Teague territory. The most of the wildlings, giants and the children fled to the remaining friendly isles. But many others were not so fortunate and were slaughtered by Teague Forces. The Teague Uprising which later fifty years became known as the Erebus Era. House Blackreyne reached the nadir of it's reign. A time that they would never know before or since. The only territories they still held were Great Wyk, Harlaw, Orkmont, Pyke, the Arbor and Oldstones. This was because those territories were too well fortified to take without an effective plan.

The Invasion of the Iron Islands was the final straw for the members of House Blackreyne. The Arnorians turned against their king in droves. Waldorf had to be brought down or they faced certain doom. Roger (the rebel) Blackreyne staged a coup against his father. Having lost his twin older brothers to Waldorfs follies, he was more than happy to do so. The coup was fairly easy since nobody wanted to resist. Roger, found his father in the highest point of Roon. Waldorf refused to go quietly and despite his bulk manage to kill several of Rogers men. Determined to not face judgement by his family Waldorf pulled himself over the battlements and fell to his death.

After the death of Waldorf, Roger was crowned king and he began making preparations to retake what was theirs. He gathered his remiainig strength and slowly began taking back his family's Kingdom. First was occupied Iron Islands, then Fair Isle and the Shield islands. He crushed the Teague feets in the sunset sea before sailing to the narrow sea.

As Roger continued his campaign, Theo Teague, had been preparing to take the last remaining arnorian holding in mainland westeros, Oldstones. Theo Teague was considered on of the most brilliant commanders of his time he had been responsible for felling Riverrun and Seagard and won a hundred battles. Now here layed his greatest challenge, the Fortifications of Oldstones enabled the Justinians to hold back the Teague attacks eleven times. The defense was under the command of Lucifer Justinian a stern and capable man. Theo had then layed siege to Oldstones and was on the verge of victory. But when news reached him about Roger Blackreyne, Theo chose to accelerate his siege of Oldstones. He gathered his entire force and attacked the castle one last time. Little did he know that a few days ago reinforcements had arrived to aid Lucifer. The Battle of Oldstones saw 10,000 Justinian defenders holding back 70,000 Faith militant. The assault lasted for 12 hours. with great losses, the curtain wall was finally breached. he remaining defenders barred themselves in the Great Holdfast. Within the Holdfast the Justinians manage to hold back the Teague attack until Roger Blackreyne arrived with his army and caught the Teagues from behind. Theo Teague and his entire army was annihilated. When Roger entered the Holdfast, he found only 600 defenders remained.

The defeat at Oldstones coupled with the death of Theo Teague marked the end of House Teague's reign. Without the brilliance of Torrence and Theo, The Teagues hold on Troyad rapidly deteriorated. Roger then quickly defeated the Teague sellswords led by Humphrey Teague. The defeat of Oldstones had also crushed the power of the Faith Militant, Oldstones had cost the Faith most of their Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows and their allied kingdoms refuse to lend any aid now that the Blackreynes were once again on the full warpath. The remnants of the Teagues and the Militant made their last stand at Starpoint. All that remained was Torrence's youngest son Damon and his grandsons, Tyler son of Theo, Hollis son of Humphrey and Damon's own son Humphrey II. Roger showed no mercy and razed each castle and everyone in them.

After the annihilation of the Teagues, Roger Blackreyne retook the rest of Troyad. He would reestablished his families hold over his kingdom, Through his rule, House Blackreyne regained it's former glory. He used the gold in his families coffers to rebuild what was destroyed. But it also had consequences, the Faith became forbidden in Troyad and anyone who worshipped them was banished. all the lords that had dared to side with the Teagues had their male lines exterminated. Though the Vances, Vyprens and the Whitehills manage to flee before Roger could catch them. The women were given to the loyalist houses as wives and the loyalist houses would inherit their lands. For this Roger was given a new title, Roger the Redeemer.

Among these loyalists were twin brothers named Ferris and Farrun. During the Battle of Starpoint, the twin brothers had charged into the deepest fighting to slay Damon Teague, his son, and nephews. This earned them the nickname the Fray Brothers a title that they took as a family name House Frey. In gratitude for their service House Blackreyne granted them a single request. The Frey Brothers asked permission to build a massive fortified bridge at the farthest end of the Green Fork. They claimed that the bridge would provide Troyad with sizable income. Roger Blackreyne agreed on the condition that they surrendered half of the income the bridge provided. The brothers accepted the terms and with thousands of builders and a huge amound of gold provided by their king a bridge was build protected by two formidable castles. The Twins.

 _Note: House Justinian is House Justman, since I think the name Justman is just plain lazy and childish._


	7. Harpies and Dragons

**The Harpy's Strife**

The Blackreynes were not the only ones who were plagued by war. In Essos House Whitehall continued to prosper. Their vast and fertile land made the house and it's nobility obscenely wealthy. They had used thei wizards to turn the shrinking Sea and the Dry Deep into freshwater bodies. Their Neighbors Hyrkoon and Yi Ti enjoyed a productive merchantine relationship with Alvion. So it was decided that in order to expand their power, they would band together to form the Tripartite Pact. This Pact promised that they would never go to war against one another and help each other should one come under threat.

This alliance proved to be beneficial when the growing power of Ghis emerged. With lockstep legions that were near equal to those of House Blackreyne, they trampled over many of the rival kingdoms. Soon the Ghiscari had conquered a sizable portion of the Eastern continent. Their empire stretched to the Bone Mountains and almost to the Rhoyne River.

The Rhoynar was the only kingdom powerful enough to defy the Ghiscari. Man for man the disciplined Ghiscari were far superior to the river folk. But the Rhoynar were more advanced and they had the magic of water wizards. At their peak, Ghis and the Rhoynar were equal in terms of power.

After warring for hundreds of years, the Ghiscari finally formed a truce with the river people. After the Rhoynar/Ghiscari war, the Ghiscari looked to expand their border Eastwards and south. The Ghiscari navy conquered every island in the Summer Sea from the basilisk isles to Gread Moraq and the Cinnamon Straits. Now Ghis turned it's greedy eyes towards Hyrkoon, Yi Ti and Alvion. Since the Ghiscari began their conquest, people had fled to either the Rhoynar or Alvion depending on who was closer.

However The Tripartite proved to not be easy prey. The Bone Mountains proved to be a formidable defense and lockstep legions don't fare well in such unfavorable terrain. Again and Again the Ghiscari army smashed itself against the fortress cities of Hyrkoon these defenses guarded the three roads into the Lands of the Tripartite.

With great effort, the Ghiscari finally manage to break through Shamyriana, capturing the city and securing the Stone Road. Using Shamyriana as a forward base, The Ghiscari began cutting a bloody path through Alvion taking the Whitehalls commoners into slavery. They also raided Hyrkoon raiding it's villaiges yet left the other fortress cities alone. The Whitehalls responded by using the stone road to launch invasions into the northern Ghiscari empire. For the most part the Whitehalls targeted Ghiscari slave caravans. But they never passed an opportunity to sack a city. In the south Yi Ti was defending it's coast from the Ghiscari navy.

It didn't come as a surprise that the armies of Ghis would clash with those of Alvion. Ghiscari's military was solely focused around footsoldiers while Alvion favored cavalry above all else. Four times out of ten the Ghiscari legions would hold. But Alvion knights were able to break through more often. The simple reason was that due to their past conflict with House Blackreyne. The Lockstep legions was something they were familiar with. But unlike the Blackreynes, the Ghiscari legions severly lacked versatility. Ghiscari were near invincible in a phalanx, but if the phalanx was to shatter they lost much of their strength. Alvion cavalry hit them from every angle probing for a weakness. The Ghiscari phalanx was strong in the front, weaker in the middle and helpless from the rear.

And so it went for hundred of years until Rayden Whitehall recaptured Shamyriana. With their forward base destroyed Ghis didn't dare try to retake it remembering how hard it had been just to capture it. In the peace, the Whitehalls demanded the return of all it's captured in exchange for Ghiscari slave lord in their custody.

The war with Ghis was over but it came at great cost to both sides. Ghis had lost half it's legions while Hyrkoon had been crippled by Ghis. In order to rebuild their kingdom Hyrkoon surrendered it's lands east of the bone mountains including the Great Sand Sea to Alvion. Avlion paid Hyrkoon handsomely for it. Using their sorcerers they filled the giant canyon with freshwater that would be fed by the no longer desolate Bone Mountains. House Whitehall now had the largest supply of freshwater in Essos. While Hyrkoon was allowed to freely take water from the massive lake, House Whitehall still owned it.

 **Rise of the Dragons**

After Ghis' failure to conquer all of Essos, the Tripartite enjoyed another era of peace. Trade began between the Tripartite and Ghis. Yi Ti reached the apex of it's power seizing the islands in the Jade Sea and the cinnamon straits. They even exacted tribute from Ghis, Qarth and Asshai. But in this world peace never lasts. A few centuries later rumors of men from Valyria riding dragons reached the ears of both the Whitehalls and the Blackreynes. When their scouts confirmed that the rumors were true. The Whitehalls and the Blackreynes began preparing for their arrival.

Both houses had been breeding Thestrals and Pegasus in secret for thousands of years. Both had a small number in captivity but the vast majority populated Sothoros. The Blackreynes bred Thestrals in their fortress on Bloodstone. Once a Thestral egg was hatched the Blackreynes would take care of them for a year before releasing it in Sothoros. By one year a Thestral colt is able to care for itself and the vast continent would allow it to grow to full size. The Whitehalls did the same for their Pegasus. Thestrals and Pegasus never fought their own kind but they had no problems fighting each other. Luckily the presence of Wyverns prevented thestral/pegasus fights from happening too often.

When it was learned that dragon eggs were being discovered by the hundreds. The two houses returned to Sothoryos in order to retrieve their companions. Having ones in captivity proved to be beneficial as the creatures would recognize the scent of their kind on the respective families. Though they didn't bring any back to their kingdom, they wanted to be sure they were prepared should the Valyrians decide to expand their territories.

Over the next 300 years Ghis waged war with Valyria five times and five times they lost. When a battle didn't involve dragons, the ghiscari always won and were even able to enslave a number of valyrians. However when the Valyrians used their dragons, Ghis stood no chance, their infamous legions burned before the might of the beasts. The Valyrians finally went on the offensive in the fifth war and burned the mighty Ghiscari Empire to ash. Once they razed Old Ghis, the Valyrians took the broken empire for it's own. After the Ghiscari, the valyrians turned their attention to their other neighbors. The Qaathi, the Sarnori the Lhazareen and the Ifequevron all submitted to the rule of the Dragon.

Finally the Dragon turned it attention to The Rhoynar. In the beginning Valyria and the the Rhoynar enjoyed a prosperous relationship. The Valyrian city of Volantis dominated the mouth of the Rhoyne. But like all great empires, enough is never enough and soon they began to slowly seize more and more control over the great river. That did not sit well with the river-folk. The last straw came when valyrian settlers slayed one of the Rhoynar's sacred giant turtles.

For 250 years, the Rhoynish fought no less than nine wars againt Valyria. Unlike the Ghiscari, the Rhoynar manage to emerge victorious in the three Turtle Wars and the War of the Three Princes. Their Water wizards were instrumental in killing dragons and dozens fell over the course of the wars. But even the power of the water wizards were no match for the Dragons of Valyria.

In the final conflict known as the Second Spice War, Prince Garin united the Rhoynar under a single banner and raised an army 250,000 strong. With hundreds of water wizards. Garin marched down the Rhoyne destroying every valyrian settlement along the way. At Volon Therys, Garin's army faced 100,000 soldiers and 3 dragonlords. The Valyrian host was wiped out and two of the dragons were killed. With the fall of Volon Therys, nothing stood in the wwayof Prince Garin and the last remaining Valyrian settlement in the Rhoyne, Volantis.

Volantis called upon Valyria itself with a plead for aid. Instead of ending an army to meet Garin. The dragonlords came with a force of 300 dragons. Garin's host was wiped out and he himself was captured. Garin got revenge of sorts when he prayed to Mother Rhoyne to destroy their enemy. Mother Rhoyne answered his prayer and destroyed the valrians that occupied Garin's home city of Chroyane. The Rhoynar wars had come to an end.

 **Nymeria's War**

After Prince Garin's defeat, The warrrior Princess Nymeria, took all the people she could and loaded them on to 10,000 ships. Most of these vessels had been provided by the Blackreynes who were sympathetic to their plight. King Roger (the Rebel)Blackreyne came to Nymeria encouraging her to come settle in Westeros. He reasoned that she really didn't have anywhere else to go. which Nymeria admitted. Theodred offered the Rhoynish a chance to settle in Troyad. The Trident and Blackwater rivers and made Troyad ideal for the Rhoynish way of life. The fact that the Rhoynar would be able to practice their religion freely also helped manners. Half of the Rhoynish followed Priestess Druselka and accepted their offer. Nymeria and the other half declined wanting to rule themselves. They chose the one kingdom not under complete dominance by a single house, Dorne.

Dorne had not changed much. Their were numerous kings including the Drylands, Blackmonts, and Manwoodys. But these rulers were petty compared to the Daynes and Fowlers. But even the power of the Daynes and Fowlers combined paled in comparison to the mighty Yronwoods. At the peak of their power the Yronwood ruled more than half of Dorne. Their kingdom stretched from the Wyle River to the Brimstone River and expanded east all the way to the broken arm. Among their vassals were the Martells of the Sandship.

When the Rhoynish landed in Dorne, the welcome was less than hospitable. Remembering the grief caused by the last immigrants that came to Westeros (the andals). It was understandable why the Yronwoods didn't trust the Rhoynish. But where the Yronwoods found a problem, Mors Martell saw a solution. He and a number of other houses met with Nymeria and agreed to help her people if she would fee them from the grip of the bloodroyals. Nymeria agreed and wedded Mors Martell.

The Martells didn't have much in terms of an army and Nymeria's own army consisted solely of warrior women. But when combined along with their allies, the result was oddly impressive. Nymeria also brought the last water wizard and Rhoynar craftsmenship which was far superior that of the Andals. Together The Martells and Rhoynar launched a rebellion against the Kings of Dorne. One by one the kings fell Lucifer Dryland, Albin Manwoody, Benedict Blackmont, Garrison Fowler and Vorian Dayne. With each victory House martells power grew. Finally they turned to their only obstacle from complete rule over Dorne. The last King, the most powerful of them all. Yorick V Yronwood, the Bloodroyal, Warden of the Stoneway, King of Redmarch and the Greenbelt, High King of the Dornish.

Defeating the Yronwoods would be Nymeria's ultimate test and by far the most difficult. Though the Martells had defeated many kings and gathered many of the dornish lords to them the Yronwoods had a significant amount of followers. Along with the Rhoynish, the Martells gained the support of the Houses Dayne, Fowler, Toland, Uller, Wells, Gargalen, Ladybright, and Vaith. The Yronwoods were backed by the Drylands, Manwoodys, Blackmonts, Wyles, Qorgyles, Jordaynes, Drinkwaters, Dalts, Santangars, and Allyrions.

In a way Nymeria owed her rise to House Teague. At the time she waged her war, Roger Blackreyne was trying to help his kingdom recover from the destruction caused by the Teague Uprising. The fleet he had used to aid Nymeria and her people consisted of vessels siezed from the other kingdoms, others lend to them by the North and Stormlands and ships captured in the narrow sea. Thus the Blackreynes were in no condition lend any military aid. If not for the Teagues, Nymeria and the Martells would have been crushed under the boots of Blackreyne and Yronwood.

Fortunately this was not the case and the Yronwoods were on their own. Though they could send no army Roger Blackreyned did send an advisor to aid Yorick, his younger brother Theodred. For ten long years, Mors Martell and Yorick Yronwood battled for supremacy over Dorne. In the Third Battle of the Boneway, Yorick slew Mors in single combat. Despite the death of her husband, Nymeria would continue the war for another twenty years. She would wed twice more, her second spouse Lord Uller died shortly due to his advanced age. Her third husband Davos Dayne faced Theodred in single combat and the two men fought to a draw. To put it more accurately they killed each other Davos Dayne perished first and Theodred succumbed to his grievous wounds 12 hours later

Yorick Yronwood eventually surrendered shortly after the death of Theodred. He and the other defeated kings were put in golden fetters and sent to the wall. But these kings would never make it to the wall. As an act of spite to Nymeria for the death of his brother, freed the shackled kings and allowed them to lived quietly in Troyad for the rest of their days. Nymeria was furious and sent a raven to Roger demanding that he allow her sentencing to be carried out. Roger didn't bother to send a reply. This act would earn the Blackreynes, the hatred of the Martells. Nymeria was already weary of war and decided not to press the matter. Instead she focused on her newy formed kingdom, Dorne.

 **Reign of Fire**

With the end of the Rhoynar Wars, Valyria now was free to extend their empire to the Narrow Sea. New settlements were built which would be known as the free cities. Blackreyne and Whitehall watched with growing concern. Without the Rhoynar there was nothing standing between the Valyria and their kingdoms. The question was who would be struck first. The Blackreynes predicted that the Valyrians would look to expand their land territories before coming to Westeros. They back this theory by pointing out the wealth and power Alvion and Yi Ti would provide. Such fears were increased when the valyrians colonized the island of Dragonstone. a small island off the eastern coast of Westeros and uncomfortably close to the Blackreyne Lands. Blackreyne and Whitehall then decided to form a pact. That should Valyria attack either of them, Both houses would join in a war against them. As much as they disliked each other, they both agreed on one thing. Neighter of them wanted to be slaves to dragonriders.

However to the surprise of everyone, such a thing never occurred. After taking the Rhoyne the Valyrians seemed content with their empire. Built a massive fleet and began the colonization of Sothoros. They captured the Basilisk Isles and built new settlements along the northern coast of the continent. After this the Valyrians seemed content with their conquests. With their territories stretching from the narrow sea to the bone mountains and across the summer sea, the Dragonslords now focused on a different endeavor. Building the greatest civilization the world shall ever see. With topless towers and architecture of unparalleled beauty, The cities of the Valyrians were wonders to behold. Their skill in crafting stone surpassed that of even the Blackreynes. Most people mistakingly called it the Valyrian freehold an empire. But Houses Blackreyne and Whitehall called it what it was. The Valyrian Confederacy.

The Valyrians established trade with it's neighbors but that was the extent of the relationship. The two families knew that if they wanted to stop further valyrian expansion, they needed something to keep the Dragonlords occupied. They studied the Valyrians and noticed that they had no central leadership. Instead it was divided between the numerous dragonlords that governed their own territories. The answer became clear, the best opponent to keep the Valyrians occupied was each other. Over the centuries the Blackreynes and Whitehalls worked hard to keep the Dragonlords in a constant state of feuding. Causing strife, bickering, hatred through any means.

When the slave built Ghiscari Empire fell the Blackreynes and Whitehalls cheered. But the Valyrians proved to be no better then their predecessor when they took up the mantle of slaving. The two families watched as the Valyrians enslaved their conquered peoples. They didn't differentiate, Ghiscari, Rhoynar, it didn't matter to Valyria. 500 years after the Rhoynish Wars, Valyria prepared to send a huge number of these slaves to Sothoros, where they would be forced to build new settlements on the continent.

Unfortunately for the Valyrians, House Blackreyne had something to say about that. Prince Braveon Blackreyne formed a plan to prevent the slave ships from reaching the Fatherland. One would have assumed that he would take the slaves into Troyad but he had no intention on doing that. The last thing he wanted was to draw the attention of the Dragonlords. Braveon looked at a map of Essos and found a small piece of territory had yet to be settled by Valyria. It was a vast lagoon with a hundred islands within. Braveon noticed that a dense fog hid the lagoon from the prying eyes of dragon rider's overhead. Realising he had found the perfect place to settle the slaves, Braveon set to work integrating his soldiers into the Valyrian slaves. He led a number of his trusted commanders and few thousand of his Stranger's Sons and warriors.

The slave fleet consisted of a thousand ships carrying a quarter of a million slaves. They whispered talk of revolt into the ears of the slaves. some were frightened but many listened. Once the slave fleet was out of sight of Essos. Braveon gave the signal and the uprising began. The slaves overran their Valyrian taskmasters and seized control of the ships. Once the armada had been secure Braveon sailed west towards the stepstones and up the narrow sea at the Stepstones the ships were given Blackreyne flags to fly in order to avoid suspicion. The Valyrians didn't think anything of it, the Blackreynes owned thousands of ships, and sea trade was heavy between Westeros and different parts of the world.

Two months after the revolt, the armada reached the lagoon. Under Braveon's leadership they began building communities on the islands, the 1,000 ships were stripped down to make pontoon bridges to connect the islands. and build homes. The slaves were now finally free and as a first rule, they declared that no an woman or child shall ever be a slave in the new city. They named their city Braavos after the leader who had freed them.

Braveon made his home in an abandoned Iron Mine located on an isolated mountain. He fortified the mine with a thick sloping wall flanked by two D shaped towers. Layers upon layers of battlements were built into the face of the mountain. Within the mountain Braveon had his miners drain it of whatever Iron it had left. Afterwards his masons carved the inner walls into a halls and extended the caverns deeper. Braveon's mountain fortress was named Hearthgard. People praised his calling him Lord of the Sea. When it came time to choose a leader, everyone chose Braveon. and thus he was named. Braveon Blackreyne the first Sealord of Braavos.

Over the centuries the Blackreynes would help in the development of Braavos, sending masons to, gold and ships. Proper building of stone replaced the wooden predecessors. Ships would go out to sea, and return with all manner of sea food to feed the populance of the city. they even found an nearby Iron Mine. Members of House Blackreyne would personally oversee eveything. Some even chose to remain in the city. Among these were Braveon's grandchildren, Lucifer, Licinia and Marion. These three were able to manipulate the numerous businesses until an elite few rose in power. About a century after the founding of Braavos the three siblings gathered 20 of the richest and most powerful Braavosi, 14 men and 6 women to Hearthgard. There they began putting a plan into motion. A plan that would create the most powerful bank in the world. The 23 individuals formed a council and pooled their resources together deciding to use Hearthgard as a vault store it. They supplied their own guards to protect it. The Iron Bank was born.

After settling in, the Council them turned their attention to improving the city, they loaned money to businessmen and nobles alike. Lucifer, the leader of the Council, set the foundations for the way the Iron Bank handled their finances. If the Iron Bank loaned a client money, the client must honor his debt. If a client could not or refused to pay the debt. Lucifer looked for that person's business rival and hand over the client's assets to him. but that rival had to honor the debt of the client. After the arrangements had been made, the client 'disappears,' never to be seen again. This business strategy would be known as Lucifer's Law.

 **The Fall of the Dragon**

Nobody seemed to know how the cataclysmic event known as the Doom of Valyria happened, Some say it was the wrath of the Gods, other that it was Prince Garin's prayer fully realized. Some measters say that it was the Valyrian's own magic brought it about. It was this therory that both Arnorians and Eridonians agree with. But it still differed greatly from the Maester's texts.

Before man was born when all the land was one supercontinent, Dragons ruled the world. Their origins vary through the different cultures. According the old Sothorians, Dragons were a product of Wyverns and Firewyrms breeding. Though these three creatrues wielded terrible power , even they bowed before a far greater power. That power was the very first of their kind, the Father and Mother of them all. Their names were Vildegrad and Formithean

Vildegrad, the Father resembled a cross between a scorpion and a dragon. His head had a large horn on it's nose the two in the back of it's skull facing the rear. He walked on four legs with the front feet being wide andhaving four claws and the hind feet were long with only three claws. Sharp spines ran along his neck and back, the neck had three rows of spined the back had seven. Instead if wings it had two apendages sprouted from it's midsection. These apendages arched forward like a pair of scythes ending in blade like points. His tail was just as unusual, it was thick and arched over the beast's body. The tail ended in pincer claws with a stinger sproutng between them. From it's maw, blue flames hotter than dragonfire or lava poured out. Though he could not fly he was capable of swimming on the surface of the water.

Formithean, the Mother was very different. Though she too resembled a dragon, it was blue in color and more aquatic like. It's body was that of a serpent with a shark like dorsal and ventral fins running along the length of it's body. Unlike her mate, her hide was smooth and slimy and not nearmy as strong. A large dorsal was in the center of her body which ended in a whale like tail fin. Like Vildegrad, she had four limbs, but these limbs were thin and short and it's feet were webbed each ending in three short claws. Wings sprouted from the center of her body, and instead of fire she spat icy breath.

In this world there were also a number of other creatures. The Children, Giants, Great Eagles, Great Bats, Griffins, Hippogryphs, Perytons, and Taurusores (Bulls with dragon wings). The children rallied the creatures of the earth and rose up against the dragons. Thought many wyverns dragons and Firewyrms perished in the Dragon wars, until Vildegrad and Formithean could be stopped the war would go on forever. The children all gathered together and called upon their gods. The earth split open and Vildegrad swallowed up, he fell to the deepest part of the earth where trapping him. Formithean refused to desert her mate and dived in after him. Thus the Father and Mother of all dragons were imprisoned in the earth for all eternity. In the area they were trapped in, fourteen volcanoes formed as Vildegrad struggled to break free of his prison. Belching fire and ash in his rage.

The dragon wars cost the lives of many of earths creatures. All but the Eagles, Giants and the Children became extinct. The Dragons fleed as far east as east went leaving many of their eggs behind The Wyverns fled to the south and their they stayed. The Firewyrms took refuge underground here they burrowed deep trying in vain to find their parents and set them free.

It was no secret that the Valyrians were heavy practitioners of Magic. Two decades before the doom Valyrians uncoversancient runes that told of a hidded power deep under the Fourteen Fires. The runes told that it was the key to true Dragon mastery, wether they be wild or tame. The idea of obtaining such power was too tempting to resist. The Dragonlords stopped fighting for a while to uncover this power. they gathered every sorcerer, sorceress mage, warlock, wizard, witch and spellcaster in Valyria to the Fourteen Fires. There they performed a ritual that according to the runes would release the great power.

The spell was caste, but the result was not what the Valyrians were expecting. Instead of some mystical energy, something else entirely was released. The ground shook, the volcanoes of the Fourteen Fires belched at once. the earth spit open the land fractured and broke apart. Vildegrad and Formithean emerged from the depths. To say that they were huge would have been an understatement. They dwarfed the fourteen flames beeing able to cup the fissure with a single paw and the ground shook with every step they took.

Vildegrad and Formithean looked around and saw dragons being ridden by strange little creatures. Enraged at seeing their 'children' under the control of such rate they unleashed terrible vengence. They leveled Valyria along with it's people, most of the dragonlords and the entire peninsula with it. Some of the dragons tried to defend their masters. Vildegrad and Formithean disciplined them. Using his breath he hatched the remaining eggs, the hatchlings mounted the back of their Father and together the two parents traveled to Ulthos. They were followed by the firewyrms and many of the dragons. In Ulthos they drove out the Great Eagles back to Sothoros as well as the other inhabitants.

Ever since then nobody knows the fate of Vildegrad and Formithean but one certain thing is that they had turned Ulthos into a dragon nest. what happens in the future would remain to be seen.


	8. The Great Slave War

**The Great Slaver War**

The Doom of Valyria was celebrated by both the Blackreynes and Whitehalls. Now that the dragonlords were no more chaos would envelope Essos. The Doom had left the Nine Free cities on their own, vulnerable and poised for war. They looked at each other eager to expand their power.

In the great plains, another force emerged, The Dothraki. Both Blackreyne and Whitehall considered the Dothraki to be the finest horsemen in the world, as well as the best fighters on horseback. A Dothraki Screamer is one of the only things that could fight and a Whitehall Paladin in single combat and emerge victorious almost every single time. Their Horse Archers were equal to those of the Blackreynes. A Blackreyne horse archer had better aim, but the Dothraki handled their horses better. The dothraki began attacking the various settlements that had been protected by Valyria. Eentually the people fled to the major cities for protection.

After the Doom, the Blackreynes prepared to embark on their most ambitious campign in their long history. The emmancipation of Essos. The Blackreynes began developing relations with some of the free cities namely Qohor, Lys and of course Braavos. They also contacted the trading guilds of Qarth. After ten years of deals, alliances and careful planning, the Blackreynes were ready to put their plan into action. King Jaedus Blackreyne personally led the campaign. He gathered assembled a force of 20,000 men and 400 ships and sailed to Qarth. He also brought in secret, 3 thestrals and 10 ship loads of gold. Along the way they sacked Gorgossos, razing the city and liberating the populance. They slew the half breeds and criminals and slavers and took in the rest.

The qaathi people had suffered greatly over time, wars with Ghis and Valyria had driven them out of their land until only the city of Qarth remained as their last bastion. Thanks to house Whitehall, Qarth was able to thrive and soon became one of the richest cities in the summer sea. But now the Qartheen practiced slavery an Jaedus intended to tech them humility. When he reached Qarth, He met with Qarths trading guilds, The thirteen, The Ancient Guild of Spicers and the Tormaline Brotherhood with an offer, he would give them Qarth in exchange for Qarths slaves. The idea of ruling Qarth enticed the Guild leaders. over the next week Jaedus and the Guilds made preparations for a coup against the Pureborn. Jaedus siezed the Pureborn's fleet and armories while the guilds gathered an army. The coup lasted a single night. Jaedus and the guild leaders stormed the Hall of a Thousand Thrones and executed the pureborn. After dealing with the Pureborn, Jaedus betrayed the Ancient Guild of Spicers to the Thirteen. Jaedus seized all but 100 of the Spicer's ships giving the rest to the Thirteen. After the Thirteen handed over Qarth's slaves, Jaedus in turn gave them the Pureborn navy. The tormaline Brotherhood had decided to join Jaedus in his campaign, as a reward Jaeus gave then the ships he had taken from the Spicers. With the Brotherhood gone and the Spicers power now in their hands, The Thirteen were now the undisputed rulers of Qarth.

After the coup in Qarth, the Blackreynes and their allies sailed to Slaver's Bay. After sacking New Ghis, Jaedus went to Astapor to buy their infamous unsullied. He wanted to buy them all, but the Good Masters refused even with the considerable fortune Jaedus offered them. So Jaedus showed them one of his thestrals, He claimed they they would be able to breed more of them if they could get purebred horses. The Good Masters stared at the powerful creature with awe and accepted the deal, 20,000 unsullied plus the 4,000 in training. The moment he got his unsullied Jaedus turned on the Good Masters and sacked Astapor. All the male slavers were killed and anything of value was taken. The slaves were liberated but Jaedus did not make a spectacle of it. Jaedus had what he needed and the time had come to eccellerate his plan.

Over the next few months Jaedus cut a bloody path though Slaver's Bay, sacking every city in his path, Yunkai, Meereen, Tolos, Elyria, Mantarys. In Mantarys Jaedus just razed the city of monsters unable to comprehend why such people could exist. After Slaver's Bay, Jaedus headed north and started sacking the free cities he wasn't allied with, Norvos, Pentos, Myr, and Tyrosh. He even sacked the Volantene towns of Volon Therys, Valysar and Selhorys. With each city he sacked his wealth grew, as well as his army and fleet. He also looted weapons with which he cold arm his freemen. Horses, crops and livestock were taken to feed his people. In Volantis, the Tiger cloaks launched an uprising which led to the release of Volantis' slaves. The escapees quickly joined Jaedus. After capturing Tyrosh, Jaedus began sending his ships full of freed slaves to the Stepstones, those that wished to fight with him stayed.

Jaedus' army was made up of a huge diversety of warriors, divided into two parts, the Warband and the Free Company. The Warband is comprised of his proffesional soldiers, Arnorians, Unsullied, Water Dancers, Norvosi Axemen, and Pit Fighters. The Free Company is made up of thousands of freemen that had no training in arms. To solve this Jaedus assigned his heavy Infantry to oversee their training. The ability to unite so many different languages and different cultures was a testament to Jaedus' charisma.

The Blackreynes had chosen the prefect time for their campaign, The free cities minus Volantis and Braavos were still recovering from the aftermath of the doom, without the dragonlords to govern them, they had started succumb to in-fighting. With the obvious exeption of Braavos, the free cities had always relied heavily on slaves to for labor as well as their army. Now the slaves were the enemy and they had no dragons to bring them down. The Blackreynes did just as well in choosing their allies. Braavos, Qohor, and Lys were among the richest cities in Essos and each had unique talents, Braavosi had ships and the Iron Bank, Qohor had sorcery and smithery and Lys had beauty. Jaedus felt that the world lacked beauty which is the reason he chose to leave it be. It was also the fact that he was married to Lyra of the powerful Rogare Family. In addition to the cities, the Blackreynes also allied with the Lhazareen. The Lhazareen were peaceful shepherds and many wished to escape the Dothraki's warpath. This remnant joined Jaedus with the promise of a new life safe from Dothraki.

But no war ever went smoothly. Jaedus' actions had earned him many enemies and they were about to gather to stop Jaedus once and for all. Jaedus had always made it a point to move quickly. In his haste he failed to thoroughly crush those he conquered. The first city was Qarth, not all the Pureborn had died during the coup. Three surviving Pureborn gained back control of the Civic Guard and overthrew the Ancient Guild of Spicers. Once they gained back control of Qarth, the Pureborn began contacting the other cities that had felt Jaedus' sword, every single one answered. The Qartheen army sailed to Slaver's Bay were they met with the remnants of the Slave Masters from each of the cities. They were also joined by the survivors of Gorgossos. Jaedus had taken the bulk of their wealth, but not all of it. They extracted their secret reserves to hire sellswords and negotiated with Dothraki. Khal Varro led a Khalasar with 50,000 screamers. From all across Essos Jaedus' enemies began raising armies to face him, they even recruited free citizens to fight. They all gathered in Volantis to make a stand. They selected Belicho a Triarch of Volantis to lead their army.

Jaedus army was enormous, his personal army consisted of 12,000 Rangers, 6,000 Warriors, and 2,000 Horse Archers. The army he had gathered from Essos had 20,000 Unsullied, 20,000 Norvosi Axemen, 20,000 Bravos, 20,000 Tiger Cloaks, 2,000 Pit fighters and 8,000 Qohorik Hunters. To combat the Dothraki he enlisted the help of Khal Mengo who had 40,000 Horsemen. The rest of Jaedus' army was 200,000 freemen determined to fight for their freedom. This gave him a combined strength of 350,000 men.

Despite the destruction caused by Jaedus' warpath, Belicho manage to muster a considerable force of 200,000 men. Qarth and Volantis were able to field 40,000 each. The other cities made contributions of their own, 10,000 from New Ghis, 10,000 Meereenese, 3,000 Yunkai'i, 2,000 Astapori, 10,000 Tyroshi, 10,000 Myrmen, 10,000 Norvosi, 10,000 Pentosi, 1,000 Elyrians, 1,000 from Tolosi, 1,000 Volon Therians, 1,000 Valysarens, 1,000 Selhorians, and Khal Varro's 50,000 Dothraki.

The two armies met at Volon Therys just north of Volantis, this battle would determine the fate of Essos. Jaedus had his army arranged in two formations. His Free Company were set up in a cresent formation with the belly of the crest facing the Belicho's army. His left flank was protected by the Rhoyne while the right wing was where his Warband was formed up.

Belicho's plan was to engage Jaedus forces in the front while Khal Varro destroyed their flank. Unfortunately Khal Varro was stalled by Khal Mengo's own Khalasar as well as Jaedus' Horse Archers.

As the two sides clashed the right of Jaedus' Free Company fell back giving more ground to the enemy. As the Free Company gave way, Jeadus' Warband hammered at Belicho's left wing. The free company gave more and more ground, this encouraged Belicho to commit more troops to the center of the blackreyne line. While the right of the free company faltered the left firm. The free company committed more troops to their left weakening the right. The Warband's skill in arms enabled them to completely shatter Belicho's left wing. Now they turned their attention on attacking Belicho's vulnerable flank. The Blackreyne line had transformed into a V with the Warband attacking the left while the Free Company attacked the right flank. Belicho's army had been forced into a wedge and was being attacked on two sides.

As the infantry engaged, the two Khalasars were locked in a vicious fight. Here the two sides were evenly matched. Khal Varro's army may have been larger, and had the support of slaver heavy horse but Khal Mengo had the help of Blackreyne Horce Archers. Jaedus and Mengo's horse archers worked together picking off Varro's screamers. A Blackreyne horse ASrcher usually had two quivers with 30 arrows each. Since Dothraki wore no armor, Blackreynes bows had no trouble finding their marks. When Varro sent a number of his screamers at them, they would wheel their horses around But as they rode away, the Blackreynes would turn their bodies around and fire arrows behind them like the Dothraki are able to do. First they toookout Varro's own horse archers before targeting the screamers. Varros and Mengo came face to face the two khals fought viciously exchanging multiple wounds. Mengo finally got hold of Varro and tore his throat out with his bare hands. With the death of their Khal Varros, his blood riders and all his relations, the rest of his Khalasar surrendered cutting off their braids and laying them at the feat of the victorious Mengo. When they saw Varro's Khalasar defeated. The slaver cavalry turned and fled rather that face a Dothraki.

With the slaver's horse broken Mengo was now free to complete Jaedus' trap. Mengo's riders rode around to Belicho's rear and began to hack it to pieces. Beligho's army was now completely surrounded, he could only watch as the wedge that was his army gradually got smaller and smaller. Eventually the slaver army surrendered. Of the 200,000 men that mede up the slaver's army only 157,000 layed dead. The survivors included 30,000 of Khal Varro's Khalasar and 13,000 slaver soldiers. Jaedus had lost over 100,000 men but the day was theirs.

After the Battle of Volon Therys, the Triarch of Volantis sent an emmisary to negotiate a treaty. Jaedus sent his terms, two thirds of Volantis' gold, ships and livestock and in return the Triarch would be allowed to keep their power. It was a heavy price but in exchange for their lives it was worth the cost. Later Jaedus sacked Qarth for it's involvment. After he Great Slaver War had come to an end 102 years before Aegon's Landing

 **The Golden Age**

The Great Slaver War changed Essos. The slave trade had been all but destroyed. With the loss of their armies and much of their gold left the slaver Cities crippled militarily and financially. This left them vulnerable to Blackreyne's allies. Braavos seized Pentos, Andalos and the Golden Fields, Qohor conquered Norvos and Lorath, and Lys took Myr, and the dDisputed lands. Volantis, the only slaver city that remained intact turned east to the other cities that felt Jaedus' wrath. With just 10,000 men Triarch Horonno quickly conquered Slaver's Bay. The nine free cities became the four Free States.

Sfter the battle od Volon Therys, Khal Mengo rode back intent on uniting the dothraki under him. Since Varro had been his greatest rival, their was little to stop him. Jaedus had gifted the Khal with a Valyrian steel Arakh, which Mengo used to deadly effect. One by one he slew the other Khals in battle until he was able to unite the Dothraki people into a single gigantic Khalasar.

Withhis people united Mengo now waged war against the Sarnori. The Tall Men of the north had a formidable army and would of been able to easily stop Mengo's warpath had they been united. Unfortunately the Sarnori didn't understand the concept of unity and their own petty rivalries proved to be the undoing of their people. One by One Mengo sacked and razed the great cities of Sarnor. By the time the Sarnori decided to finally band together it was too late. Their kingdom had been too weakened and Mengo's army was as fresh as ever. Sarnor's fate was sealed in the Field of Crows, when Mengo's son Moro led 100,000 Dothraki against 150,000 Sarnori under King Mazor Alexi. Moro himself slew the Sarnori king and crushed his army. The battle had come at the cost of 20,000 of Moroo's horsemen. The Field of Crows marked the end of the Sarnori. The remnants numbering only 20,000 fled to Saath the only city still standing.

After defeating the Sarnori Moro now turned his attention to the Four Free States in what became known as the War in the Plains. Leaning from the Sarnori's lack of unity, Braavos, Qohor, Lys and Volantis forged a pact known as the Four Brothers against the nomadic horde. This war would last for years, outlasting Moro and his successor Khal Horro. The War of the plain came to an end when Khal Horro was slain by First Sword of Braavos Elyo Grivas. After Khal Horro's death the dothraki went back to their old ways and split into a dozen different Khalasar. The Dothraki's reign of terror had finally ended.

House Whitehall gained much power after the Doom and the Great Slaver War. After Jaedus razed Qarth, The Pureborn had been all but wiped out. Without the Pureborn of the Trading guilds the city was now completely leaderless. This made it ripe for the taking to anyone who wished. Someone did just that Prince Eckthelon Whitehall came to Qarth with an army. Ecktheon new that Qarths position as the gateway to commerce between eastern and western Essos made it valuable to his house. The Qartheen didn't put up a fight when he took rulership for himself. His family took the Civic Guard and the Trading fleet for themselves. This led to the creation of a new branch House Whitehall of Qarth.

Ever since the Fall of the Sea Green Emporers, Yi Ti had been on a steady decline, it's power was beginning to dwindle thanks to the inept Yellow Emporers. Eventually this led Yi Ti into a war with Alvion. Alvion wouldn't of dared wared with Yi-Ti during the reigh of the Sea-Greens but the Yellows were a different matter. House WhiteHall won easily and Yi Ti was forced to give up a great portion of it's kingdom including the Five Forts. Now Yi-Ti's kingdom was a quadrelateral stretch of territory with Yi-Ti's four major cities forming the corners.

House Whitehill was not the only one to rise in power. After the war, Jaedus Blackreyne finally completed his exodus, delivering the last of the freed slaves to the Stepstones. It is estimated that over 4 million slaves had been liberated and they now huddled in the archipelago wondering what would happen to them. The Blackreyne's plan was not merely to free slaves. After the success of Braavos, they decided to do the same thing on a far larger scale. Namely create a nation out of the Stepstones by using liberated slaves. They decided that The Vault on Bloodstone would become the seat of power for the new nation As slaves were already skilled laborers, there was no need to train them. Due to the fact that there were slaves for every form of work from soldiers to teachers, the Blackreynes had all the building blocks nessessary to built an functioning, well rounded society. One of the main obsticles was the diversity of the avoid confusion and unnessesary confrontation, The Blackreyenes kept them working with their own people. The teachers from Meereen would teach these people common tougue to maintain order.

The Blackreynes colonized the Stepstones in the same way they did with the Iron Islands started building the settlements on each island. Naturally the larger islands had larger and more settlements. They started with port cities and fishing villaiges before moving on to inland settlements. On the 8 larger Islands the cities were as big as Tyrosh while the smaller islands the city was as small as White Harbor. The Stepstones were considerably more fertile than the Iron Islands and the larger islands were able to have farming communes. As with Blackreyne tradition, all these settlements were fortified. Once the settlements were established, each one elected a Warden from among their own to govern the settlement. The Wardens would then answer to the Lord of the Isle. The Vault was renamed Arnor after the Blackreyne homeland and became their new Seat of Power. The work was long and bitter but when it was all completed the result was woth all their toil.

Tyrosh was the cultural and trading center for the Isles but it was Torturer's Deep that became the capitol city of the Sentinal Isles. Torturer's Deep was larger than Tyrosh and the Gateway to Arnor. It was bitter work but once it was done the Sentinel Isles became as prosperous as the Iron Islands. This prompted people to call it the Iron Islands of the Narrow Sea. This in turn encouraged House Blackreyne to rename the Stepstones to the Sentinal Isles. House Blackreyne of the Sentinal Isles. The freemen hailed the Blackreynes as their saviors and Statues were built for every Blackreyne and their wives that ruled the Stepstones since. A common phrase among them would be "Under Jaedus Our Judicator."

After the Great Slaver War House Blackreyne had reached the apex of it's power. Their control over the stepstones gave them undisputed control over trade between Essos and Westeros. This Century would be forever known as the golden age of the Blackreyne Dynasty. Never in their history would the Blackreynes possess more territory, people or ships than in this age of glory.

It should be noted about two falsehoods in history. One was that all but the Targaryen dragon's died during the doom, the truth could not be more different. While many of the dragons did die or flee with Vildegrad after the doom many others did survive. The reason hese survivors were never seen can be sumed up in two words, Blackreyne and Whitehall. After the doom, both houses were thrilled seeing an opportuity. They didn't want to risk any Valyrian claiming the surviving dragons so the two houses orchestrated The Great Dragon Hunt. Riders on Thestrals and Pegasus' flew across Essos killing every dragon they could find. They made a sport of it to see who could kill the most dragons. Jaedus' son Dev would personally kill four particular dragons. These dragons happened to belong to House Targaryen of Dragonstone. Eckthelon Whitehall would slay five dragons himself.

The other falsehood was that the secrets to valyrian steel were lost with Valyria, this also was not true. Valyrian steel has existed long before Valyria. In Sothoros is was called Stygian Steal. To make Valyrian steel one needed three things, dragon's blood, magic and Tartarus Iron. Just as you need Iron to make steel so must you have Tartarus Iron to make Valyrian steel. Tartarus Iron is ore from the deepest depths of the earth. The only time it can be aquired is when volcanos spit it out during an eruption. This was why Valyrian's had so mush of it as the fourteen flames released it almost daily. Usually you would wait for the lava to dry up and cool before disecting it for the metal inside. But in the fourteen flames lava flowed endlessly like a river. So Valyrians used magic to extract the metal. Once the metal is extracted, metalworkers then mixed the Tartarus Iron with dragon's blood then woven with magic. With the composition fixed, the steel is now forged into whatever was required from weapons to jewelry. For Valyrian steel swords a special step was required. In order to ensure the blade stayed forever sharp and never needed cleaning, the blades are placed on the spires of towers to be struck by lightning.

Qohor is the only place a substitude for Valyrian steel can be found. While Qohorik blades are indeed stronger and sharper than any other on earth it is still can never hold a candle to True Valyrian steel.

Though Dev's rule would be a short but peaceful one. During his reign Dev would sire nine children Dalton, Tyron, Ciron, Jangus, Malgus, Cora, Tara, Veiga and Daala. Unfortunately a peaceful reign could not be said for his son. When Dalton Blackreyne became the Trident King his great test would come from the east, bearing red and black colors, draconic, three headed.

 _Author's note: Next time Enter House Targaryen._


	9. Plans for Conquest

**Aegon**

A storm was raging on the island of Dragonstone, but by now the inhabitants there were use to it. The former Valyrian outpost was as far west as the freehold extended and never highly regarded by the dragonlords. Now it was the last Bastion of the Valyrian people. A century after the Doom, The rulers of Dragonstone, the Targaryens now have a new ruler. But unlike his ancestors, this Targaryan has plans for Westeros.

Aegon Targaryen sat in the Chamber of the Painted Table. His right hand held a goblet of wine as he looked over his latest project newly completed. The Painted table was in truth a highly detailed map of Westeros. Complete with every river, mountain, lake, forest, castle, city and town. Aegon made sure the Painted Table was carved with pinpoint accuracy. The only detail that the map lacked was the borders. This was done on purpose for two reasons, one was that with the constant fighting that occurred between the seven kingdoms the supposed borders were in a constant state of shifting, making borders would of been a wasted effort. The second was that this was Aegon's vision, a united Westeros. No more borders and no more seven kings kings, one realm and one king.

Aegon took a sip of Arbor gold as he regarded each of the seven kingdoms. Four of them were Andal kingdoms and worshipped the new gods. The other three held a mix of several religions.

The North, the largest and oldest of the kingdoms boasted the purest line of First Men. They held firm to the old gods and defied the Andals more times than can be counted. Despite it's size the North is lightly populated due to the intense cold especially in winter. Winterfell the seat of house Stark is one of the oldest standing castles in Westeros today. The King in the North Torrhen Stark was a middle aged man who believed greatly in Honor. He held his own bastard brother Brandon Snow to a high regard. Even giving him a seat as one of Torrhen's principle advisors. Aegon smiled at that remembering fondly his relationship with his own baseborn brother Orys Baratheon.

The Vale, was the most isolated of the kingdoms held the purest line of Andal blood. The Vale is first and foremost a mountainous region. While these mountains werecomfortable during the summer, winter makes the mountains impassable forcing the people to either move south or remain in their castles and hope that they have stored up well for the season. The Eyrie, the seat of house vale is considered nigh impregnable. The Vale is under the reign of the boy-king Ronnel Arryn. Because of his young age, rule of the Vale itself went to Ronnell's mother Sharra Arryn who was regarded as one of the most beautiful women in Westeros. Aegon scoffed at that, no westerosi could ever match the beauty of his sisters.

The Westerlands, were the richest of the Kingdoms. It's lands were not as fertile as that of their neighbors in the south and east. But what is lacked in fertility, it made up for in wealth, the hills and mountains of the Westerlands were teaming with gems and minerals. Like the Vale, the Westerlands are a mountainoud region, though these mountains don't offer near the same protection as themountains of the Vale. Casterly Rock, the seat of House Lannister sit atop the largest gold miine in Westeros and is by far the largest castle in Westeros. The Westerlands are ruled by Loren Lannister, the King of the Rock.

The Reach is the most fretile, most populous and most beautiful of the seven kingdoms. Their vast lands are the largest suppliers of harvest. they not only feed their own population, they provide for the other kingdoms that ally with them. The Reach is considered the birthplace of kighthood and thus have the largest cavalry force. Being the most populous of the kingdoms, the Reach can also field the second largest army. Highgarden like the Reach is the most beautiful castle in Westeros. But Highgarden is by far the most vulnerable of the region capitals, such is the price for beauty. The Reach is ruled by Mern Gardener the ninth of his name.

The Stormlands had certainly earned it's name. With it's frequent storms that harass it's coastline, it is a wonder how ships survive here at Stormlands encompassed two of the largest forests in Westeros, the Kingswood and the Rainwood. This makes them one of the main suppliers of wood in westeros. Storm's End the seat of House Durrendon is one of the strongest castles in Westeros. It is rumored that the castle is additionally protected by magic. Aegon wondered if such magic existed would Storm's End be able to withstand Dragonfire. From Storm's End Argliac Durrendon ruled as the Storm King.

Dorne was the only Rhoynish Kingdom in Westeros. Dorne was as hot as the North was cold and by far the least populated of the seven kingdoms. They also had the more culturally unique as oppose to most of Westeros. Examples being Dorne is the only kingdom that is not ruled by a king of queen but rather an prince or princess, and the throne passes to the eldest child regardless of gender. Because of their rhoynish background, Dorne provides an abundance of exotic foods that are not found anywhere else. Princess Meria Martell, the ruler of Dorne is by far the oldest of the monarchs. Her seat is Sunspear the capital.

Finally in the middle of the continent lay the seventh Kingdom, Troyad. Though it wasn't as large as the North, as rich as the Westerlands, as populous as the Reach, or as well protected as the Vale. Of all his adversaries, Aegon considered house Blackreyne to be his greatest challenge. While the other houses continued to practice feudalism. House Blackreyne's method of ruling revolved around efficiancy, unbiased methodical and fair. To simplify rule, Troyad was divided into provinces. House Blackreyne is also the only house that commanded with a full time professional army and a navy that outnumbered the vessels of the other kingdom's combined. The Current Trident King of Troyad was Dalton Blackreyne, a man as mysterious as Aegon himself.

Aegon shook his head. Throughout their history, these kingdoms have bickered and fought like children over toys for minor gains. The only notable exceptions are the Blackreynes and Starks. The Starks are the only House, that the Blackreynes never warred against having been allies for over 6,000 years.

"That is all about to change," Aegon declared. He had called a council meeting with his bannermen and supporters later on in the day. The doors opened and in entered Aegon's Council.

First came Aegon's sister wives. Visenya and Rhaenys. Visenya was his elder sisterand a true Warrior women. She preferred chainmail over silk and wore her long hair in braided coils. She was a valyrian beauty with silvery gold hair and deep purple eyes. Visenya was a woman with powerful passions and a serious nature. Because of her prowness as a warrior she was gifted with the Valyrian Steel Sword Dark Sister. On the opposite end was the youngest of the Targaryen siblings, Rhaenys Targaryen. Visenya may have been a beauty but she paled in comparison to Rhaenys who practically glowed. Rhaenys was everything her sister was not, sweet, graceful and free-spirited. She wore her silvery gold hair loose and loves music. Unlike her sister, she took no pleasure in the feat of arms though she was skilled in the Water Dance. Rhaenys greatest love was Meraxes, she spent more time riding her dragon than Aegon and Visenya did combined.

Next came his bannermen Daemon Velaryon and Crispian Celtigar, both men were capable and had proven their loyalty time and time again. Finally came the man Aegon trusted above everyone else. His closest friend and bastard brother, Orys Baratheon. Oryn was an imposing figure, at six foot six, he towered over Aegon's supporters. His mane of thick black hair and eyes a purple so dark they were mistaken for black. Orys was a fierce warrior and equal to Aegon in swordsmanship.

Once his council was seated Aegon stood up. "As you all know it has been my plan to unite Westeros under House Targaryen. For thousands of years, these petty kings fought over measly gains. This constant warring ends this day. From now until the end of time Westeros shall be united as one. One realm and one King to rule them all."

Murmering was heard among the council. "And how do you intend to unite them brother?"

Aegon looked at Orys. "that is why I have called this meeting to hear any suggestions on how I shall start pur campaign." Preferably Aegon would of landed his troops at the mouth of the Blackwater Rush, unfortunately House Blackreyne had unintentionally ruined that plan.

For the past forty years, House Blackreyne had been working on a massive project at the spot known as the Starpoint Hills. At first they believed it to be a castle, but as worked progressed, the truth became clear. The Blackreynes weren't building a castle, they were building a city. Complete with subterranean drains and sewerages, aqueducts, canals, wells, thick coastal walls, high watchtowers, and wide granite sett streets. Any kind of business you could name was there, smithys, tailors, masons, markets, taverns, brothels, workshops and artisan quarters. Naturally it also had barracks, stables, training grounds for soldiers and even Temples for the gods of the First Men, the Rhoynar and the Arnorians on one of the hills. The entire eastern side was one giant harbor and shipyard. The buildings and streets were all laid in a straight lines giving the layout of the city a grid-like design. On the highest hill, was a ringwall where a drum shaped structure was being built. The City was named Tridenton.

Visenya was the first to speak. "I would recommend that we sent forth your declaration to unite westeros. Afterwards we see which houses rally to our cause, before we can decide the next course of action."

"Wouldn't that give the kingdoms plenty of warning?" Orys asked.

"Any course had great risk Orys," Visenya replied calmly. "But we must start somewhere." Visenya turned to her husband, where should we land our forces brother?"

Aegon rubbed his chin in thought, he had considered Troyad at one point but gaining support from their was unlikely at best. The Teague uprising had led to the elimination of over 2/3rds of the noble houses in their domain. Some like the Vance's and Vyprens fled to the Reach. Those that remained would have cemented loyalty to the Blackreynes. Aegon had to think of an alternative.

Aegon called for his squire to write his declaration to all of westeros.

 _To all the Lord, Ladies and the Seven Rulers of Westeros_

 _By decree of Lord Aegon the Dragon of the House Targaryen, Lord of Dragonstone. The era of the seven Kingdoms is over. From this day forward, Westeros shall be united as one Realm under one king. All those who surrender and bend the knee shall keep their lands, holding and titles. But those that defy us shall be cast down, humbled and destroyed. Make your decision wisely._

Aegon had copies of this declaration made for every raven available to him. These ravens would carry it from Dorne to the North. The next day a cloud of ravens swarmed out of Dragonstone to deliver Aegon's message. High above the ravens was the factor that will gain Aegon the allegiance of all Westeros. There flying in a circle were the pride of House Targaryen, three gigantic firebreathing dragons.

 **Dalton**

Dalton Blackreyne sat on a stone chair in war-room of Arnor contemplating the recent events. At six and twenty, he was the youngest of the rulers in Westeros, since Sharra Arryn ruled in the place of her son. Dalton was a powerfully built man standing 6 feet, eight inches tall and 240 pounds of hard muscle. He was as clever as he was cunning and handsome with midnight black hair and piercing silvery eyes. Dalton was considered the deadliest swordsman of his time, wielding the family sword Fury with unparalleled skill.

Dalton held Aegon's letter with an amused smile on his face. Unlike the other Kings, the letter came as no surprse to Dalton. He had guessed the valyrian lord ambitions years ago and had been preparing for his arrival. Dalton had cleared the coffers of his settlements to prevent Aegon from adding their wealth to his own coffers. He had already assembled his army which numbered 70,000 strong, 10,000 Horse Archers, 20,000 Warriors and 40,000 Rangers.

But Dalton would not rely on his own strength alone. He had reached out to the other Kings proposing an alliance against the Dragonlords should they invade. He reasoned to them that the one thing they could agree on was that none of them wanted to loose their crowns as well as the birthright of their Arryns, Martells, Lannisters and Gardeners refused to fight along side the Blackreynes. The Arryns and Martells shut themselves in their respected kingdoms while the Gardeners and Lannisters forged an alliance.

However the Starks and Durrendons proved to be more interested in the idea. Torrhen Stark naturally agreed due to their alliance with Triyad. Argilac Durrendon had fought along side Dev during a border war against the Reach. Dev's third son Tyron was currently a ward of Argilac. During his years as a Ward Tyron spend a great deal of time with Argilac's only child Argella. He taught her how to wield a sword and soon the two became close. Argilac later wrote to Dalton suggesting that Tyron marry his daughter on the condition that he adopt the Durrendon family name. Dalton readily agreed to the proposal and the betrothal was set.

The three kings agreed to gather their forces with Torrhen bringing 40,000 and Argilac with 30,000. They would gather at the God's Eye to challenge the Dragonlord.

Before him Dalton's siblings murmered amongs themselves regarding Aegon's letter. They were seated along a round table to symbolize their equality Dalton had four brothers and four sisters. All were different but Dalton loved them for it.

The eldest were currently absent the twins Ciron and Tyron. They were exactly identical in looks with dark gold hair and dark green eyes. They were so much alike that it annoyed them that no one but Dalton could tell them apart. To end the confusion, Ciron dyed a streak of his golden black. While Tyron was in the Stormlands, Ciron was in the North as a ward for Torrhen Stark.

Daala is Dalton's eldest sister, she was volumtuous and wilder than most animals. She would challenge a bear whitout hesitation, Dalton couldn't tell whether she was brave or insane. She had her father's black hair and her mother's green eyes giving her a harsh yet seductive beauty. In the bedchamber, she was as comfortable with other women as she was with men. Daala was a master at archery referring distance over brute force.

Malgus is the strongest of the brothers, a huge mountain of a man standing at eight feet tall and could twist steel with his bare hands. He keeps his head shaved and his silver eyes seemed to be wild with energy. His fiery temper matched his strength and his body was covered in scars due to his habit of not wearing armour in a fight. He had little interest in women preferring instead to hone his combat skills. Despite his size he is by no means dim witted and has shown time and again to display a high level of cunning.

Veiga was a very private woman who rarely socialized with others She has no desire for companionship and was obsessed with magic. Veiga is as tough as Daala with none of her beauty. Flat chested and freckled, she kept her blonde hair short and her grey eyes seemed like slush.

Cora and Tara were the female set of twins. Pretty, playful and sweet as doves. Unlike Ciron and Tyron, their was no mistaking these twins. Cora had black hair and silver eyes while Tara has soft blonde hair with bright green eyes. Their beauty was described as innocence yet and were often found with other pretty women that they took to bed. It is known that Cora and Tara were the only ones who could fully control Malgus fiery nature.

Jangus is the youngest sibling and arguable the smartest. His face took after his father with black hair and silver eyes. the opposite of Malgus, Jangus was lean and fast, He was often found with his nose in huge books or in the company of men.

"It seems you were right about Lord Aegon brother," Daala spoke up. the other nodded in agreement. "How did you know it would be him?"

Dalton set the letter down and faced his siblings. "Dragons have a lifespan of 200 years," he began to explain. "It takes a century for a dragon to reach maturity though they will continued to grown in size and strength long afterwards. By now Vhagar, the youngest of Aegon's dragons will be large enough to suit his purposes."

"Why not just kill then like we did with the four dragons Aenar Targaryen brought?" Malgus wondered.

Dalton shook his head. "That would be an unnessessary waste. My grandfather started the Dragon Hunt so the Targaryens could not interfere while he emmancipated Essos." Dalton reached across the table and grabbed a bunch of graped from a bowl. "Many tamed dragons are a problem, many wild dragons is worse." Dalton closed his fingers causing most of the grapes to fall back into the bowl. "But a few is fine, as long as they are contained." By now most of the graped had returned to the bowl leaving only a few enough for Dalton to completely enclose his hand over them."

Veiga spoke next, "So what your saying is-"

"All we need to to is ensure these dragons stay 'contained' as it were." Dalton finished as he popped the remaining grapes into his mouth.

"Does this mean?" Jangus began.

Dalton smiled and nodded. He stood up and headed for a special room with his siblings in tow. This room had the thickest door that wasn't a gate. Dalton pulled the stone door open strange noises could be heard. "We shall fight the dragons of House Targaryen," Dalton declared, "and they shall help us do it."

The door revealed a long corridor, along the sides were dozens of cells. In each cell were huge black horses with bat-like wings on their back. Their roars were a combinatuion of a horses neigh and a dragon's roar as they spit bolts of strange blue light.


	10. Terms

**Argilac**

King Argilac Durrendon, clenched his fist in anger as he read Aegon's declaration

"INSOLENT PUP," Argilac roared. "That silver-haired sprite dares to to order ME to bend the knee. I, Argilac Durrendon.

Around him Argilac's councillors sat silently as their king ranted. The Lords gathered at Storm's End were Argilac's most trusted advisors and they made up his Inner circle. Among them were Lord Buckler of the Bronzegate, The Marcher Lords Swann, Dondarrion and Caron, Lord Errol of Haystack Hall, Lord Fell of Felwood, and the Evenstar of Tarth. Sitted directly to his left and right were his closest confidants. To his left was his most trusted advisor and finest battle commander Dickon Morrigan

To his right sat his only heir and daughter Argella and her betrothed. With her ebony black hair and bright blue eyes, Argella was regarded a a great beauty in the Stormands. Beside her sat her future husband, Tyron Blackreyne. Tyron had served faithfully as Argilac's ward for 13 years. He was close friends with the bastard of Blackhaven ever since they defended Blackhaven against a dornish attack from the red mountains. During the secnd dornish invasion led by Wyl of Wyl, Tyron dueled the Widow-lover and nearly succeeded in killing him. But thanks to Dornish spearmen, Tyron was only able to cripple him, talking his left leg off.

Argilac had his resevations when Tyron asked permission to train Argella in the art of fighting, but Argella was adament about it. Besides Argella would become the Stormlands very first Storm Queen. He knew his bannermen would be reluctant to follow a woman Argella would need to prove to them that she was worthy."

Argilac turned to his ward who was studying a map, "it seems your brother was right about the dragonlord."

Tyron looked up from the map to address the Storm King. "Yes it seems," he said quietly.

"M-my King," Lord Balon Tarth began, perhaps it would be wise to be cautious about this. Lord Aegon is more dangerous than we realize."

Argilas laughed, "Ha, I turned back an invasion into my kingdom from Meria Martell, the Yellow Toad, TWICE. I defeated Garse VII Gardener even though he had three times my numbers. Tell me my Lord Tarth, What has this valyrian done that should fear him?"

"He has three Dragons," Lord Hoster Swann pointed out. "How do you suppose we defeat such a foe."

Argilac scoffed. "dragons can die just like any other animal. Dragons have great protection but according to Dalton Blackreyne a well placed shot to the eye will kill them." He turned to Lord Morrigen, I want you to gather the finest archers we have, Dickon. If we are to face Aegon's dragons we will need them."

Dickon bowed, "it will be done my king."

After making the nessessary arrangements, Argilac dismissed his war council and called Tyron in to discuss a personal manner."

Tyron entered Argilac's personal solar and bowed respectfully. "How may I be of service," he asked.

Argilac studied the young man before him, since he had come to storms end as a boy Argilac had grown fond of him and had treated him as the son he had wanted. "I will be marching with my army to jojn your brother at the Gods Eye," he said. "I need you to stay here as acting stewerd of Storms End."

Tyron didn't bother to hide his surprise "h-here your grace,"he asked confused. "Am I not coming with you?"

Argilac gave him an apologetic smile. Argilac rarely smiled to anyone with the exception of his daughter, who could always make him smile. "I know you miss your siblings," he said gently. "But I need you to protect my daughter if anything happens to me."

Tyron's face softened, "I swear I won't let any harm befall her so long as I draw breath." The idea of finally having quality time with Argella made Tyron smile inwardly.

"I do not trust her safety to my castellan," Argilac continued. "Ser Penrose had always been defiant of me and I fear he will make a move as soon as I am gone."

"If I get so much as a whiff of treason from that snake he will par with his life. Tyron replied his hands fingering his dual maces.

Argilac nodded, he knew that some of his men disapproved of his daughter's marraige to the Blackreyne. It was more than likely that not only would they over throw his daughter should he die. But Tyron's own life would be at risk as well. But Dalton was no fool ha had sent a force of 200 men to serve as Tyron's personal guard. Argilac knew that while his own bannermen would have fickle loyalties to his daughter, Tyron's own men were had absolute loyaltiy to Tyron. The fact that Tyron's men were capable veterans made Argilac confident that his heir was safe.

Argilac marched from Storm's End a two days later. Argella hugged her father good bye and said she would pray for his safe return. The Storm King clasped hands with Tyron and pulled him close. "Remember your promise," he insisted, "look after my daughter."

After Argilac departed, Tyron returned to his chambers and found Argella lying on his bed, Tyron smiled as he joined her and planted his lips to hers. 'Argilac would kill me if he found out what we have been doing,' he thought. But as her warmth sent a thrill through his body He realized that he cared little for that as the two made love. After they finished, Tyron layed his head on Argella's lap as she stroked his sleek blonde hair.

"Father would be fuirous with us," Argella said smiling down at her love.

"Well you've always been such a bad influence on me."

Argells broke into a grin, "You were even worse."

That made both of them laugh as the locked lips. "Do you think father will be okay?" She asked him as they broke apart.

Tyron looked at her, he never could sugar coat anything he said and the last thing he would be was dishonest with his future wife, at least not about this. "Your father has always lived by his own terms," he said after a while. Should he fall in battle today then he would have died the way he lived. I don't think he would want it any other way."

Argella ceased her stroking, "you think father will die?" She asked her vioce filled with worry.

Tyron sighed, "anything can happen Argella. I hope he lives, I'm not too fond of becoming Lord Regent just yet."

Agella's smile returned as she traced the lining of his muscles. "Lord Regent Tyron Durrandon," She said to herself, "it does have a nice ring to it."

"Almost sounds as good as Queen Argella," Tyron replied with a smile.

"It's rather odd though," Argella pointed out. "I think this will be the first time a man taked the family name of his wife."

Tyron sat up and shrugged, "in exchange for such a fierce and beautiful woman as my wife. It is more than a fair trade."

The two smiled and kissed, unknown to the couple, Captain Penrose stared at their chambers with a gleam in his eye.

 **Torrhen**

Torrhen Stark sat with his bannermen in the great hall of Moat Cailin. The aging stronhold was the gateway into the North uarding it only safe path. Thanks to House Blackreyne, the Fortress remained intact. Over the years, the Blackreynes improved on it's fortifications making it stronger than ever with each passing century. The basalt curtain wall has been replaced with onemade of granite. The Wooden keep was torn down and a stone keep now stands in it's place. Using magic from the Children of the Forest the ground around the stronghold was made firm to prevent it from sinking into the earth.

As Torrhen met with his council, his assembled host was camped just north of the Stroghold ready to march south at the given order. Under different circumstances, it would have taken Torrhen months to gather such a force. But thanks to Dalton Blackreynes foresight. He was able to call his banners early and by the time Aegon had sent out his proclaimation his lord were ready with the men.

"Tomorrow we march past the neck and into Troyad," Torrhan annonced to his council. From there we shall meet with King Dalton Blackreyne Host here at the gods eye. Torrhen's finger pointed at the large lake in the center of westeros. The gathered lords nodded.

"Is it true about the dragons?" Willas Manderly asked.

Torrhen nodded, Our scouts have reported as such. Lord Aegon has three dragons, fully grown according to King Dalton."

This caused murmuring amonst the lords, "How can we stop dragons?" Domeric Dustin wondered his face filled with worry.

"King Dalton has a plan for them," Torrhen explained. "But he refuseds to tell me what it is. I suspect that he fears the wrong ears hearing it."

"LET THEM COME," roared Hosteen Umber. "We did not fall to the Andals and their wrong gods, we shall not fall to this purple eyes princess, dragons or not." This earned shouts and roars of approval from Torrhen's council.

To Torrhen's right sat his bastard brother Brandon Snow. Though he was a bastard, Brandon was an vicious fighter and Torrhen's most cunning battle commander. Beside Brandon was Torrhen's ward Ciron Blackreyne. He stayed quiet most of the time and his hand often stroked his streak of dyed black which stood out against the rest of his golden hair. During his time in the north he had formed a bond with Torrhen's sons often took part in training them in the absence of the master of arms. But his closest friend in the North was Brandon Snow. Sometimes it was hard to tell if he was Torrhen's ward or Brandon's.

Unlike Aegon, the Andals didn't have dragons to answer any complaints Lord Umber," Ciron pointed out.

Lord Umber nodded grimly and looked away. "Your brother isn't trying to prove anything is he?" Ronald Bolton asked quietly as he stroked his goetee.

Ciron turned on him his eyes flashing, "my brother is not one to grasp petty things like pride of ego Lord Bolton. But he will not have us enslaved like the Rhoynar were."

"He's right Lord Ronald," Rickon Karstark replied. "We must be prepared in case this Aegon plans to suburgate us."

"Well if his intentions are anything like the andals we will be more than ready for him." Brandon declared confidently.

"With this alliance between the North, Troyad and the Stormlands, none of the other kingdoms can stand against us." Ciron commented quietly.

Ronald looked down. "I don't think that we will be able to stand against three dragons plus the whole might of the Reach, Vale Dorne and the Westerlands."  
Ciron shook his head, Dalton if confident that Aegon will not gain the support of dorne soon if ever. Most of the Dornish are of Rhoynar Blood tand they haven't forgotten what Aegon's people did to their own."

Brandon nodded, Three kingdoms plus three dragons against us?" He let out a laugh, "sounds like excelent odds."

After the meeting Torrhen spoke with Ciron privately. Torrhen didn't know what Ciron's brother had planned, when he confronted Ciron about it Ciron simply said he couldn't tell him and that Dalton will explain everything when the right time came. No matter how much Torrhen would pry Ciron remained loyal to his elder brother.

"Are you sure about this?' Torrhen asked.

Ciron's gaze met The King in the Norths and shook his head, "no," he admitted. "But my brother is sure and that's good enough for me

Torrhen sighed, "I'm taking a huge risk Ciron, whatever your brother has planned I hope he knows what he is doing."

Ciron turned to Torrhen with a rare smile. "Your grace, my brother always knows what he's doing."

 **Aegon**

A week had passed since Aegon sent forth his decree, within that week reports came pouring in. As expected the seven rulers chose defiance and rallied their bannermen. But not all the lords and ladies declined, Marla Sunderland, ruler of the Fingers sent her brother with her forces, pledging fealty to Aegon in exchange for protection from the Starks and Blackreynes. The forces she sent greatly increased Aegon's fleet by 2/3rds. With this Aegon now felt that he had the substantial armada to challenge the Blackreyne river fleets.

As Aegon pondered his next move Visenya entered the room. "Lord Brother two lords are here to see you."

"Who would they be?" Aegon asked

"Lord Triston Massey and Lord Janos Bar Emmon," She replied.

Aegon gave a curt nod and two men entered the room, one had a sordfish on his jerkin and the other had three different coloured spirals on his. Both men bowed to Aegon before Lord Massey spoke, "King Aegon as the lords of Massey's hook we humbly swear fealty to you and pledge our troops to your cause."

Aegon studied them for a moment before asking the question. "Why do you wish to join my cause?" He asked out of nessessity. "If I recall you are sworn bannermen to the Durrrendon's of Storm's End."

The two lords looked at each other before Lord Janos spoke. King Argilac in his youth was a good ruler," He explained, "he held off forces from the Reach and defeated every raiding band the dornish have sent. But he has aged since then, and in his old age he has grown bitter and arrogant."

"Plus there is the matter of seccesion," Lord Massey added. "Argilac has no sons only a single daughter."

"Are you implying that a woman cannot rule as well as a man?" Visenya asked dangerously.

The ords were about to argue but they noticed that Aegon was glaring at them waiting for their reply. They realized that they were on thin ice and the wrong slip of tongue could spell their ends

"N-no Queen Visenya," Lord Masey said hurriedly." It's just that She is betrothed to a Blackreyne and we feel that they are gaining to much power for our comfort."

Aegon nodded given the Blackreyne's already considerable influence it seemed like a good reason. The strength these houses provided bolstered Aegon's forces to 6,000 strong. Aegon bidded these men to take a seat as he accepted them into his council.

Daemon Velaryon delivered the news as it came. "Two alliances have been formed against us," he reported. "One comprised of the Reach and the Westerlands , the other is comprised of the North, Troyad and the Stormlands."

Aegon nodded grimly, though these alliances could potentially cause problems for him these petty rulers were only prolonging the inevitable. "It doesn't matter if they all unite against me. Aegon declared, "their armies will be bathed in fire."

Daemon nodded, "of course your grace."

"Even with these alliances it will take time for them to gather their armies," Orys Baratheon reasoned. "Especially the north."

Daemon and Crispin Celtigar looked at each other and spoke once more. "You haven't heard my lord but that is not entirely accurate. Dalton has gathered a force of 70,000 at the God's Eye. Torrhen Stark has reached the neck with 40,000 strong. Argilac has mustered his own army 30,000 strong. I believe he intends to march north to Join Torrhen and Dalton's forces."

The Targaryen were silent how can this have happened. "That is not possible," Aegon roared. "I sent my decree just a week ago how can the North have come up with such numbers so quickly?"

"My brother is right Lord Daemon," Rhaenys spoke softly, her voice was throaty and lovely as she was. "This must be a ruse Lord Daemon."

Daemon shook his head. "I checked my sources multiple times I'm afraid they all say the same thing."

Aegon rubbed his chin, though such a force would pose no threat to his dragons, it would most certainly pose a threat to his army which was severly outnumbered. With the Houses of Bar Emmon and Massey behind him Aegon knew where he would strike first. Now that decision was more crucial than ever. "I have decided where we should land," he declared. His councillors gathered to hear what he had planned. "Our first target will be the Stormlands. We shall land here at Massey's hook and march along the coast as we make our way to Storm's End."

"Shouldn't we use the Kingswood to cover our advance?" Orys asked uncertain.

Daemon shook his head, "We do not know the Kingswood like the stormlanders do." He explained, The Kingswood is a perfect place to be ambushed."

"But by hugging the coast we give Argilac the window he needs to join up with King Dalton and King Torrhen," Orys countered.

This got the other lords murmuring, they all turned to Aegon leaving the final decision to him. After a moment Aegon spoke up. "We cannot fight such a force so early in out invasion," he said finally. Regardless of the risk we must stop Argilac before he crosses the Blackwater.

Everyone present nodded and Aegon continued with the rest of his plan. "Once the Stormlands have been subdued, we'll then march east to the Reach and deal with this Lannister/Gardener alliance."

Just then a messanger came in, "pardon the interruption my king, but a letter from the Vale has arrived for you."

Aegon gestered for the messanger to enter. The man handed Aegon a scroll with the Arryn seal on the wax. Aegon broke the seal and read the contents.

 _King Aegon Targaryen_

 _I have recieved your declaration to all of westeros. As Queen Regent of the Vale I am compelled to write to you in the hopes that we can negotiate a peace between us. I shall pledge the full might of the Vale to your cause against your rivals, I also offer myself as your wife. I was once known as a great beauty but I have sent you a portrait so you can judge for yourself. All I ask in return is the lands east of the green fork and for you to name my son Ronnel as your heir. I hope you will consider my proposal and avoid any unnessessary bloodshed._

 _Signed Lady Sharra Arryn, Queen Regent of the Vale of Arryn_

Aegon couldn't help but be amused by the letter as he took a look at the portrait she had sent him. 'She is beautiful,' Aegon admitted, 'in a westerosi sort of way, unfortunately Sharra Arryn is ten years older than I am.' Besides Aegon already had two wives, who far outshined this woman. and he had no intention on taking a third.

"What is so amusing brother?" Rhaenys asked innocently.

Aegon set the letter down. "Queen Sharra Arryn offer herself as a wife to me on the condition that I mname her son my heir.

Rhaenys gave him a pouty look. "Aww Egg, are we getting to old for you, now you wish for a taste of the Western fruit?" She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously, behind her Visenya rolled her eyes.

Aegon smiled and cupped Rhaenys hand on her cheek. "I swear there will be no one else, I have my queens and that is all I'll never need."

Rhaenys grinned, obviously delighted at the proclaimation. Aegon returned the smile just as two guards escorted a tall young woman into the room flanked by two others. "This woman claimes to be an emmissary from Dalton Blackreyne," one of the guards declared.

Aegon gave a wave of his hand and the guards left. The woman was quite young no older than four and twenty. She had a dark beauty to her with a form fitting armour that hugged the curves of her body. Strapped to her waist was a Jian sword from Yi-Ti. Her midnight black hair was tied in a long braid that went down to her knees and haunting green eyes that seemed like hooks to the soul. The two women beside her were simularly dressed and armed with dual swords on their hips. "Those must be Valkerans, Aegon said to himself. Her face showed no emotion as she approached Aegon and bowed stiffly. "Lord Aegon," the woman began her voice throaty and smooth, "My name is Daala Blackreyne, I come here bearing an offer from my brother king Dalton Blackreyne, Warlord of Arnor, The Trident King, Shield of the Ancients and Defender of the Free People."

"King Aegon," Visenya corrected her, "and you should kneel when you approach a king.

Daala turned her head towards Visenya and gave her a mischevious smile. "With respect Lady Visenya, my allegiance is to my brother alone. I sure you can understand that. Whether your brother **becomes** our king remains to be seen."

This causes an angry stir amongst Ageon's council, but Daala did not flinch. as Aegon raised his hand to diffuse the situation. "No need for that sweet sister," Aegon replied calmly, "This lady is obviously loyal to her family and won't do anything to disrespect that." Aegon rubbed his chin before continuing, "so what does **King** Dalton have to say to me."

Daala gave a single nod and spoke. "Dalton Blackreyne admires your ambitious goals, something he is no stranger to. A week ago you sent him a proclamation, My brother has sent me here to give you an offer of his own. King Dalton will surrender his crown and bring his forces to your cause."

This surprised everyone present, of all the kings they did not expect the Blackreynes to surrender so easily. But Aegon suspected that there was a condition to it. "And what does your brother want in return for his support?"

"A betrothal," she replied. Aegon and his sisters looked at each otherin silence and waited for Daala to continue. "A simple pact sealed in matrimony. In exchange for his support in your campaign, King Dalton offers a marraige pact between himself and your younger sister Lady Rhaenys Targaryen. With the consent of both you and her of course."

This took all the Targaryens off guard. When Aegon heard the word betrothal, he expected that Dalton would offer one of his sisters to him. What he didn't expect was the offer to be presented to his sisters. "Why does he present this offer to my sisters?" he asked her. "What does your brother hope to gain from such a match."

"A wife," Daala said simply. "Dalton is six and twenty yet is still unmarried. If it is your wish to rule Westeros, it is a good start to begin forming bonds with the great families. Dalton understands that you are already married and do not wish to take another wife. He hopes that you will be more open to this offer."

Aegon sat back into his chair to ponder, beside him Rhaenys seemed to be thinking on it with what seemed to be interest. Most men would have accepted this offer, but Aegon was not like most men. Dalton Blackreyne was offering his allegiance, but the price he was asking for was nearly unthinkable. Rhaenys was his favorite wife, everyone knew this and the one person that Aegon held dearest to his heart. 'No', he decided, he would not sell his wife to some Warmongerer. Rhaenys was a woman who loved music and poetry, she would hardly fit with a man like Dalton Blackreyne.

After a long moment Aegon gave his answer. "Tell your brother that Rhaenys is already married to me and I will not break my vows to her and sell her off like cattle at the market to anyone not even one with your brother's reputation."

Daala's face betrayed nothing as she turned to Rhaenys, "do you feel the same way Lady Rhaenys?"

Rhaenys stood up and replied. "I love my brother, "Lady Daala, i will not orsake our marraige."

Daala bowed deeply, "as you wish, thank you for taking the time to speak with me."

Your not offended? Visenya wondered.

Daala shook her head, "no Lady Visenya, in truth my brother figured as much. Still it was worth a try. Well I best be on my way, war tends to be a messy business."

As she turned to leave one of the guards put his hand on her shoulder. "You are not permitted to leave," he said.

Daala looked at him with a bemused smile, "Darling are you sure you want to ride this horse?" The guard grabbed her arm, and that was his mistake. It happened so fast Aegon wasn't sure if he caught it. Daala moved with such speed and grace it was almost like she was dancing around the guard. By the time Daala stopped the guard was on the stone floor groaning in pain and clutching his crotch.

All those present stared at her in shock. Four other guards moved to sieze her, but they were knocked out by Daala's valkeran guards. before anyone else could react. Aegon raised his hand, "leave her be," he demanded. The guards backed off and Daala smiled mischeviously before leaving. But not before sharing a look with Visenya.

Two days later Aegon woke between his sisters to find a letter and a box on his bedside table. Curious Aegon opened the letter and read.

 _Oh say can thou see_

 _The Ghis Empire's light_

 _When so proudly they caved_

 _To the Dragon's last scheming_

 _Who rained Fire and spilled Blood_

 _Across the lands they burned black_

 _And the Rhoynar they squashed_

 _Were so gallantly screaming_

 _And the Dragonlords stare_

 _Soaring high in the air_

 _If you don't have a dragon_

 _Then your freedom is stripped bare_

 _Oh say does that red and black banner deprave_

 _Over the land of pure power_

 _And the home of the slave_

 _Lord Aegon Targaryen, While you will be able to bring the other kings into submission, your threats will not work on us. We are not the Ghiscari or the Rhoynar, ours is the blood of Arnor. You will not be able to bully us into submission with those pets of yours. I'm sure they have grown into magnificent beasts, but I warn you, I have dealt with it's kind before. In the box is proof of how serious I am, something Balerion's siblings have been missing for a long long time_.

Aegon finished reading the letter and his siblings exchanged looks. "He says he's dealt with dragons before," Visenya said. "How it that possible?"

Rhaenys ever curious opened the box and gasped in surprise. Inside the box was four dragon fangs. Aegon picked one up, "judging by their size these came from ones fully grown."

A thought occurred to Aegon. Dalton had mentioned Balerion's 'siblings' perhaps he was talking about the four older dragons the targaryens brught with them to Dragonstone. A generation later, they mysteriously died and no one knew how it happened. The only clue they had were several dozen burn marks that scarred the corpses.

Together, Aegon, Orys and his sister wives headed towards the great hall. Here the skulls of the four dragons were hung. Veraxes, Malerion, Tyrax, and Caserion. One trait worthy of note was that each skull was missing one of it's main fangs. Aegon took each fang and discovered that they matched perfectly

"How does Dalton Blackreyne have the missing fangs of our old dragons?" Visenya wondered to on one in particular. The question was met with silence but the silence told how seriously they took it.


	11. The Last Storm

_Author's note. A thousand apologies for this wait, it was never meant to take this long, so to make up for it, I extended it to include what was meant to be the next chapter. I hope this makes up for it so enjoy and apologies again._

The Last Storm

Aegon marched his entire army into the Stormlands. Following the lead of the lords of Massey's hook, the Houses Wendwater, Sunglass and Rambton had also joined Aegon. The powerful houses Vypren and Vance had met with Aegon the moment he landed. Aegon was no fool though, he knew they were only here to get revenge on House Blackreyne for exiling them. Still they had provided a substantial amount of men and Aegon would take all the men he could get.

These houses bolstered Aegon's forces to 14,000 men, yet it was still small compared to Argilac's 30,000. Most of Argilac's men were hardened veterans from wars with the Dorne and the Reach. But Aegon had dragons and that was good enough for him. The letter Dalton sent made Aegon more determined than ever to stop Argilac before he could join King Dalton.

House Wendwater offered to guide Aegon's forces down their namesake river. This would allw Aegon to cut through Argilac's kingdom without facing much opposition from forces in the kingswood.

This proved to be a saving grace. Argilac had sent the Bastard of Blackhaven with 2,000 men into the Kingswood to harass Aegons men as they made their way through the kingswood. By uon seeing the Tarrgaryen ships in the Wedwater river ruined this plan. After sailing some distance, Aegon's forces dismounted and marched on Bronzegate. Argilac had called on all his forces in the Stormlands leaving only a token force to defend his lords castles. Bronzegate quickly fell to the Targaryens and Aegon used it as a base of operations in the Stormlands.

When Argilac heard of the fall of Bronzegate, he was enraged that this dragonlord would dare occupy one of his castles. Feeling that his priority was to defend his kingdom, Argilac changed his course. Just south of Bronzegate was four steep hills that overlooked the land in all directions. Argilac decided to make his stand here. As soon as Argilac reached the hills he began fortifying them with earthen walls, ditches and spike. Argilac garrisoned 7,000 men on three of the hills, led by his best commanders, the Lords Buckler, Fell and Errol. The fourth and final hill was commanded by Argilac himself and Dickn Morrigen with 9,000 men.

Aegon seeing this felt that it was time to strike and began marching on the hills along with his three dragons. Aegon planned to descend upon them from the sky and rain fire on the Storm King's men. But things rarely go according to plan, As Aegon's army approached the hills a massive storm that the land was infamous for erupted. The wind, rain and lightning was such that it forced the dragons to remain aground. As if to further hamper them, the wind and rain was blowing from the south into the faces of Aegon's army. Restricting their vision and movement. Nevertheless Aegon chose to attack, he knew Argilac knew the storms of his kingdom better than he did. The last thing he wanted was to give Argilac the chance to slip through during the storm.

The plan was set, since Argilac had divided his forces, Aegon decided to attack each hill one by he could not fly, Balerion was still formidable on foot. Aegon decided to use his dragons to trample each hill's defences while his men engaged the Stormlords. Due to the mud caused by the rain, Aegon had his men fight on foot and in light armour.

At Aegon's command, and the battle known as the Last Storm began. As expected, the storm made ascending the hill difficult, men got stuck in the mud and others were walking blind. Aegon's men were forced to stayed close to the dragons. The Dragons crushed the ditches, the trenches and the earthen walls like they were nothing. Once a path had been cleared the targaryens swarmed through the gap and engaged Durrendons. The fighting lasted from dawn and well into the night. The Durrendons fought well, inflicted heavy casualties on Aegon's forces But when faced with the Balerion then they began to falter. The storm turned out to cut both ways. The rain had wet the bowstrings of Argilac's archers rendering them useless. even if they could work, the storm gave poor vision keeping the archers from pinpointing the eyes of the dragons. So the Durrendonss resorted to other means hacking at the Dragon's forelegs trying to slice the wings. but the moment they got close Balerion bathed the area around him in fire. Durrendon forces were either burned or devoured by the beast.

One by one the hills fell before Aegon and his dragon. First the hill under Lord Errol, then the one under Lord Fell and finally Lord Buckler's hill. Thanks to Balerion, the Durrendons lost twice as many men as Aegon in taking the hills. Many retreated to Argilac's hill. Those that couldn't get away surrendered to Aegon.

Argilac now commanded the last hill with 16,000 men, Aegon had 8,000 men remaining. With a blow of the warhorn Aegon bagan his final assault on Argilac's hill. Balerion trampled through the final hills defences, but as the dragon turned to attack Argilac's men a thunderbolt struck him. At first Aegon thought nothing of it, but just a moment later another thunderbolt struck the beast. Then another, then another soon Balerion was being hammered mercilessly by a constant stream of lightning. Though they weren't fatal, it was enough to force the dragon off the hill.

Argilac witnessed this spectacle and wasn't sure what to make of it. The Storm King decided to use this to his advantage and turned to his men. "Do you see?" Argilac declared, "the gods are with us , they sent the gale to aid us in battle now they have driven Aegon's beast from us. We shall be victorious this day!" The site of seeing the dragon retreat revitalized the courage of Argilac's men and they charged at Aegon's men with fire in their hearts.

Aegon realized that the Durrendons had the fighting spirit back. He didn't know what to make of the storm but he knew that if victory was to be his Argilac Durrendon had to die. Together with Orys by his side, they fought their way towards the Storm King.

The4 two sides fought viciously with neither side gaining a clear advantage Argilac slew targaryen soldiers left and right and even slew some of the storm lords that had betrayed him.

Aegon spotted Argilac and charged just when he reached him, Aegon was slammed into the mud, Aegon got up with difficulty as the mud latched to his armour, When he finally got on his feet, Aegon found himself face to face with Lord Dickon Morrigan wielding a large axe with a cruel head.

"So you are the dragon king," Lord Dickon sneered, "not so mighty without your pet are you?"

"Mighty enough," Aegon quipped as the two men clashed.

After cutting through many stormlanders, Orys came face to face with the Storm King himself. On foot they met, Orys Baratheon in his Valyrian styled armor and Argilac in his iron and chainmail armor. The hardened veteran stood there holding a large mace with dozens of corpses at his feet. Orys gave the aging king a chance to surrender. Argilac spat at him and roared, "DAMNATION TAKE ME BEFORE I EVER SURRENDER TO SOME DRAGON'S BASTARD. With that said the Storm King charged. Orys stood fast with longsword in hand and kite shield at the ready.

Argilac struck first of course, he was taller than Orys by a full head and possessed stronger arms due to the martial practice of the Stormlands.

However most men who see themselves as strong tend to use their strength as a substitute for their skills, a fact Orys intends to counter.

King Argilac took a swing at Orys's head, intent on smashing the left side of his opponent's head only to be met by nothing but air as Orys lowered himself to avoid the blow and quickly slashed at the Storm King's exposed stomach.

The strike however was a mere glancing blow but enough to dent the iron plated armor Argilac wore into battle.

Quickly pivoting left he managed to escape to the right of King Argilac who saw Orys and attempted to swing his mighty mace in response.

Sadly heavy weapons such as maces and war hammers are incredibly slow no matter the size and Orys knew this as he brought his sword down on top of King Argilac's right elbow. The chainmail and iron did their job surprisingly well but not enough to protect the King from the bite of Orys' blade as the weapon cut across Argilac's protected elbow until it struck flesh.

Yelling in pain Argilac did not fight as a warrior would but a wild animal as he quickly swung his right arm across Orys's face. The blow strong enough to send poor Orys to the ground, his blade being thrown from his hand as the Storm King advanced with mace in hand, stalking towards his fallen foe.

Say what you will about the Storm King but none could deny that he was strong as Orys was stunned from the harsh blow of a man who could well be his Father in terms of age. However that did not mean Orys Baratheon would lay on the ground and wait for death as Argilac came closer, boasting as he walked.

"Not bad Baratheon I see now why the Dragon King named you his advisor. Perhaps I should send him your Hands as well along with a letter detailing how I broke his precious little brother." Argiliac shouted for all to hear until he hovered over Orys and prepared to end the battle with one quick smash across the breastplate.

Pity that Argilac did not bother to realize that Orys had his shield positioned in a way that he could bring it up in defense as any smart man would do.

Argilac soon learned however as brought down his mighty mace on top of Orys Baratheon's breastplate only to find a wooden shield had been brought up to protect it's wielder.

Orys held on tight against the leather straps of his shield, ignoring his blade as he felt the impact of Argilac's mighty weapon strike against his shield.

Had it been any other shield perhaps King Argilac would have smashed the simple wooden piece into splinters. Sadly Orys is a Commander in the service of House Targaryen and as such he was gifted with a Valyrian made shield complete with a thin layer of solid steel in the center.

Shocked that his strike failed to meet it's target Argilac was stunned for a moment, long enough for Orys to kick at the Storm King's left knee with all of his might, sending Argilac Durrandon to his knee and his chest on top of Orys's shield.

With all of his might Orys pushed Argilac aside, sending the Storm King toppling beside Orys as the Hand of the King rolled on top of Argilac and prepared to smash his face in with the weight of his shield.

Argilac however would not be defeated so easily, he was the Storm King, the most powerful man of the Stormlands. Not even the Gods could defeat his ancestors and neither will some bastard named Baratheon as Argilac drew the hunting dagger strapped to his belt and thrust it deep into the side of Orys Baratheon.

With a loud scream Orys halted his attack, allowing Argilac to toss his foe in a similar manner that he himself suffered not long ago.

Quickly Argilac searched for his weapon as Orys recovered, the hunting dagger was made to pierce flesh, not armor but still the weapon managed to pierce deep into Orys' side. The weapon was lodged in one of his ribs, more than likely keeping Orys alive ironically as he dropped his heavy shield from the weight. Next was his helm in order to allow Orys Baratheon to breath easier as the storm continued to rage above them.

Orys knew that Argilac was disarmed at the moment, no doubt searching for his weapon but at the moment Orys was in too much pain to care. The wound could be treated but the longer Orys fought, the harder it will be leaving the Hand of the King no choice but to finish the fight as he saw his blade lying on the muddy ground.

Reaching for the blade Orys felt the familiar touch of his blade as he rose to his feet, his left hand clutching at the wound as Argilac soon found his own weapon and prepared.

The Lords, knights, and footmen of both Durrandon and Targaryen stopped their own battles and watched as their commanders prepared to face each other in final combat.

Orys dazed with his side pierced, Argilac with a damaged right arm and his breastplate damaged around the belly. It was clear that both men took terrible wounds but their strength kept them alive as Argilac gave out one final war cry and charged at Orys Baratheon in hopes of ending their duel.

Yes the Stormlands would fall but at least Argilac would have the satisfaction of taking the only person Aegon Targaryen cared about other than his sister wives.

Almost immediately Argilac charged first but in his arrogance he ignored the fact that his mace felt heavy on his wounded arm. Orys saw it however, he saw that Argilac Durrandon made the mistake of any arrogant man, he failed to see his limitations.

Such a simple mistake allowed Orys to see that he could win now as he played defensive, Argilac will more than likely strike from the right as he always did.

He was right as Argilac swung his mace like a club and aimed for the head and like before Orys backed away only for Argilac to swing his mighty weapon back faster than before. It was as though Argilac had struck rubber and the weapon simply bounced back however Orys could see the pain in Argilac's eyes, beneath the smile etched on the Storm King's face.

Bringing his sword to meet his foe's own weapon Orys wasn't stupid enough to actually cross his blade with the head of Argilac's mace but instead aimed for the handle just above where Argilac's hand gripped the weapon.

Imagine the look on Argilac's face when he discovered that his mighty weapon had been stopped by a man using only one hand. Now imagine Orys' face over the fact that he even managed to do that without being sent skidding across the muddy battlefield.

Smirking Orys knew Argilac's wound had weakened his legendary strength to match that of Orys. So the Hand of the King pushed his blade to the side with all his might and sent the mace aside, allowing Orys to quickly jab at Argilac's face with the tip of his blade.

The face of the Storm King soon found itself replaced with the look of disbelief as Orys Baratheon managed to land a minor cut just below Argilac's right eye.

Backing away further Argilac attempted to gain some distance so he could use his weapon properly but Orys would not allow his advantage to go to waste and instead pushed forward.

Argilac defended as best he could, the fool continued to carry his shield in his left hand while his right continued to trip blood from his wound. As Orys pressed on his attack Argilac continued to defend himself as best he could, using his mace to parry countless strikes while using his shield to block the faster attacks.

When Orys struck with an overhead swing Argilac would block the blade with his mace handle or use his shield to parry the blow and counter with a mad swing in order to keep Orys at bay.

It did not take long before Orys saw an opening in Argilac's defenses, as Orys feigned weakness from his wound and lowered his blade. Argilac, seeing an opening struck Orys with the top of his mace, a powerful blow that would have more than likely caved in Orys' breastplate had he not moved side face to dodge the blow.

Argilac overextended his blow and paid for his mistake as Orys punched at Argilac's wound, sending a spike of pain throughout the Storm King's arm.

His might mace fell to the ground from the pain as Orys gripped Argilac's arm and pulled him forward, piercing Argilac's already damaged stomach plate.

The blade was no Valyrian steel blade but it was close enough of as the blade pierced through iron plate, chainmail, flesh and bone until Argilac found himself fallen to his knees, unable to feel his legs. The Stormlanders stared in disbelief as they saw their mighty king fall and could only look on in shocked silence

Orys knew pulling his sword free would be a wasted effort, the weapon was lodged deep within the Storm King's gut. Knowing this Orys saw Argilac's mace lying on the muddy ground not more than a few feet away and quickly reached for it. Orys Baratheon could feel the weight and power behind Argilac's weapon and while unfamiliar with the weapon knew that he merely needed to swing the weapon hard enough to kill Argilac Durrandon, the Last Storm King.

Orys stepped over the Storm King in truth he would have preferred to keep Argilac prisoner in order to force his people to surrender. So he chose to give the warrior king a final chance to surrender. "Surrender and I will spare you, Orys told Argilac.

Argilac glared at Orys defiantly and spat at his feet, "The Blackreynes will have you," he snarled.

Orys sighed he knew it wouldn't matter if Argilac was still alive or not because his days as a warrior are over and the worse dishonor for a warrior is to not grant them the mercy of death. Argilac never felt the blw from his own mace as it caved in his skull and turning his brains into pulp.

Argilac, Durrendon, the Last Storm King was dead, and with his death his remaining men either fled or surrendered. The Battle of the Last Storm had ended.

Argella

When word reached Argella of her father's death at the Last Storm she didn't wail or collapse. She simple walked awayto be by herself. Tyron simply held her as she wept quietly into his shoulder.

"Your Father died the way he lived," Tyron said assuringly. "On his own terms, I doubt he would of been content dying in a bed."

Argella nodded in agreement. Once her tears had been spent, Argella's face turned hard. "The Targaryens may have taken my father's life but they shall never take Storm's End." She declared with renewed determination.

Tyron nodded and the two locked lips, not fearing what lay ahead only knowing that whatever came they would do so together.

After Argilac's death it was only a matter of time before Aegon came to Storm's End. The would be king came not only with Balerion but also with Orys Baratheon riding with him.

Aegon Targaryen landed in the courtyard of Storm's End. Argella and Tyron were waiting for them armed and armoured. The garrison was out with Crossbows, longbows, spears and javelins. The ballistas on the battlements were aimed at the dragon. Aegon and his half brother dismounted and approached the Storm Queen and her husband.

"Your father, Argilac is dead," Aegon told Argella. "His host broken and his closest followers slain. Yield now and you shall not meet the same fate!"

A soft chuckle could heard, Aegon turned and found it coming from Tyron Blackreyne. The man stepped forward with a grin on his face. "What makes you think we shall meet a grusome fate my lord?"

Aegon turned to the young man and his expression darkened. Your walls are high and thick but they can't stop dragons Lord Blackreyne."

Tyron shrugged. "It's Lord Durrendon now, but you are correct these walls can not stop dragons, but they don't need to. The Children of the Forest granted House Durrendon with a shield over this castle. All the dragons in the world cannot break the power of the Ancients."

"That we will have to find out," Aegon declared. "I do not know these ancients, so I shall put your claim to the test."

"A test that you shall fail." Argella quipped

"If you refuse to surrender peacefully Lady Durrendon, then your castle and all within it shall be burnt asunder."

Argella's eyes narrowed. "You may take my castle Lord Aegon, but all you shall win is blood, bones and ashes."

Aegon stared down at the young woman with hard eyes, "so be it. I will give you until the sun sets tomorow." With that he mounted Balerion, Orys followed shortly but not before giving the Storm Queen an apologetic look

As Tyron and Argella went back inside, Tyron caught sight of Penrose glaring at them. The aged castellan seemd to be pondering switched between looking ad the dragon and at the couple. Tyron was not as learned as his brother, but he was still be able to sense the tell-tale signs of a coup. Fortunately he made sure to take certain percautions. The doors of most room had ben reinforced with steel, and bolts. He made sure Argella personal guard were properly equipped and as near the Queen as possible.

Captain Penrose and Tyron never got along, Penrose had hoped to be the one to become Argella husband but the Blackreynes ruined that plan. Also Penrose didn't like the idea of bowing to a woman even if she was the only child of his king. He was even less happy about her marrying a Blackreyne being from an Andal House.

Until now the only thing that stopped them from going at each other's throat was Argilac. Since Argilac was gone, the two men constantly bickered. Normally Penrose would object to a suggestion by Argella while Tyron always backed her decision. Penrose privately suspected that some of her ideas were influenced by her betrothed.

Now a Valyrian with three dragons was going to burn them all and the royals actually believed that they would be able to defy him. Penrose worshipped the seven, he didn't believe in any magic. Perhaps it was real, perhaps it was not But Penrose was not going to stand by and watch as Tyron and Argella see the Stormlands set ablaze.

The Storm's End consisted of 700 men, most of whom were with Penrose and the others could be persuaded. But not all the garrison would follow the plan notably the Antler Guard. House Durrendon had a personal guard of 200 men, Half had marched with Argilac to face Aegon while the other half stayed behind to safeguard the next Storm Queen. These men would fight to the death do defend the Durrendon family and would do so for Argella. Then there was Tyron's Guard which was not part of the garrison. When Tyron came to Storm's end, he was escorted by 66 Blackreyne soldiers, this included 60 heavy infantry and 6 Stranger's Sons. Like the Antler Guard they were steadfastly loyal to their liege and took orders only from him. Penrose was deep in thought, staging coup was considered treason and held great risk. He may get hanged by the Stormlords for turning against their queen. But that was better than burning alive.

That night Tyron and Argella made love again, though they had done this many times before, This time there was more passion in it than ever before. Though they were confident that the defences of their castle would hold. Something about being on the verge of dead caused them to be more adventurous. Afterwards the couple were basking in the afterglow of their activities. Tyron planted tender kisses all over her body while she caressed his muscles and cradled his head.

"We could flee you know?" Tyron said after a while. "if you have doubts, we can go to the Sentinal Isles where no one can touch us."

Argella smiled sweetly at him and shook her head, "This is my father's house my love," She said. "This is the birthright of my family," she placed a hand on her flat belly. "The birthright of our child," she added. "I will not abandon it to some Valyrian and his ilk."

Tyron returned the smile and pressed his lips to hers, "my beautiful black doe, that's why I love you." He ran his callouse fingers through her long black hair, before getting up from the bed to dress.

"Where are you going?" she wondered.

Tyron looked back at her. "Nowhere, he assured her. "Believe me I would rather stay in bed. But we are still at war, and I must prepare for the worse." He strapped his dual swords on, Tyron and his twin both wielded unusual swords. The blade was about 2 and a half feet long like a shortsword, however unlike the most sword, their weapons had an unusually long handle on them roughly about 1 and a half feet.

"You think the Targaryens will attack?" she asked. "His arm will have to grown long indeed to reach us here."

Tyron eyes turned sad, "it isn't Aegon that worries me Argella."

"Then whom?"

Tyron sighed, "fear can make a someone do terrible things and noe everyone in this castle is fond of our union especially not Captain Penrose.

"You think Penrose will kill you?" she asked horrified. "I've known Penrose since I was a girl, why would he ever betray me?"

"He desired you Argella," Tyron reasoned, "I've seen the looks he gives you."

Argella grimanced at the idea, Penrose was old enough to be her father, being in his late thirties. With that thought in her head she got up too and donned her battledress. Though she preferred her laces and silks, the garments Tyron had made for her gave her a harsh beauty that she found attractive. As she strapped on her jian sword, the noise of battle could be heard a rapping on the door was heard, Tyron unbolted the door and let in one of his Stranger's Sons. The man bowed to the royal couple before speaking to Tyron.

"My lord Tyron, the Castle garrison is in open revolt," he reported. "Captain Penrose is leading the traitors. They broke into the armoury and secured the top of the keep."

"What of my guard?" Argella asked with worry.

"Almost half have been slain, we have rallied as many as we could and are forming a defensive perimeter." He turned to Tyron, "What are your orders my lord?"

Tyron turned to his wife, Argella's face hardened. "I won't be penned up in a bedroom like a child. If we are to make a stand it should be in the throne room my birthright. It has only one enterance and enough room for us to fight."

Tyron turned to the guard and nodded, "you have your orders, now carry them out." The Stranger's Son nodded and rushed to relay the orders. Tyron walked to the corner of the room and pulled a bit of canvas over a particular Item. Tyron didn't trust anyone to read his raven scrolls to his family so he had brought his own personal raven. Tyron quickly wrote two letters one to Ciron and one to Dalton. He tied the messages to each of the raven's feet and sent it off.

Once Tyron and Argella had properly armed themselves. Slowly The Durrandon Loyalists escorted Argella and Tyron to the throne room. Tyron had some of the men go down to the store room to retrieve some supplies in case of a siege. After securing the enterance with bolts and braces they prepared for the coming assault. Tyron knew the doors wouldn't hold forever.

The situation left Penrose had a dilemma. Preferably he wanted to starve the loyalists into surrender. But If Tyron had manage to get word to his brother than he and the other conspirators would face the full might of House Blackreyne. Penrose wanted to prove his loyalty to King Aegon early on and he would not be able to do that with a siege within the castle. Another problem he faced was what to do about Tyron. If he lived he could return to ceclaim his place at Argella's side. But if they killed him they risked the wrath of his older brother Dalton as well as the man's vengeful twin. Penrose and his men brought up a heavy ram from the armoury made of oak and with a spiked iron head. After setting it up, the conspirators began pounding on the double doors.

The ramming seemed to past for hours. Each time the ram struck the doors Tyron could hear the sounds of the wooden braces and bolts creak and crack as they gradually began to falter. Once brace fell then another and another, soon the bolts started to break in half. Tyron's men formed a V formation with the wide part facing the doors. Finally Penrose's men gave one great heave and the double doors broken through. Without hesitation Penrose and his men pour through and the skirmish began.

Despite being heavily outnumbered, the loyalists fought well. The Antler Guard were among the finest warriors in the stormlands selected for their skill and unfavered loyalty. All of whom were heavily armoured knights armed with longswords and maces, which they dual wielded with devastating effect. For every Antler Guard they killed, Penrose lost three men. There was no point in comparing Tyron's guards let alone the Stranger's Sons. With their spears next to useless in these quarters, Tyron's heavy infantry turned to their warhammers and bastard swords.

In all his years Penrose nearly forgot how tough Arnor made their soldiers. But what disturbed him was that many of them were grinning as they fought. Tyron's men were having the time of their lives, they loved fighting. Despite heavy losses they manage to gradually overwhelm the loyalist forces. All that remained were Tyron, Argella, four Antler Guards and the Stranger's Sons. The Stranger's sons had dual ended swordstaffs, two Bastard Swords strapped to their belts and they were worth ten Antler Guards. Penrose had lost 400 men as a cost. Tyron and Argella stood before the throne while their remaining guards formed a tight circle around the royals. Penrose and his men surrounded them.

"You are outnumbered my lady," Penrose declared with a smirk. "Surrender and I will spare you and your precious lover."

Argella laughed coldly, "brave words from a spineless traitor."

"Even more from a dead Andal Maggot," Tyron added spitting at Penrose feet."

Penrose smiled dangerously, "Look around Lord Blackreyne, you have nowhere to go."

"If you trying to frighten me Captain Penrose, you will have to do better than that."

Penrose Laughed. "even if by some gods given miracle you and Argella do survive this, Aegon and his dragons will roast you all alive."

Tyron laughed, "if you harm me, you will not live long enough to enjoy it." Tyron paused for a moment in thought. "And if that dragon lover touches Agrella, My brother will feed him his own limbs."

"And pray tell how will he do that?" Penrose wondered.

Tyron's smile broadened, "my brother will find a way, he always does?"

"That we will have to see?" Penrose replied. He drew his greatsword. "This ends today."

Tyron charged at Penrose with his dual swords. While the final stand of House Durrendon began. Tyron had taught Argella well, taking steps with smooth grace, she twirled her Jian Sword thrusting into the gaps in the armour and slashing throats.

As Tyron and Penrose dueled, some of Penrose's men attempted to intervene. But Tyron cut them down easily without breaking the rhythm of his stance. Yet is not for those men penrose would have been killed very quickly. Several times Penrose seemed at deaths door, but his men's sacrrifice allowed him to revocer long enough to continue the duel. Penrose may have had expierience, but Tyron was stronger, faster and had more to loose than he did. As their duel reached the foot of the throne, Penrose knew he had to find a way to beat him or this lopsided duel would not last much longer.

Finally Tyron thrust one of his swords, the bladed sunk deep into Penrose's arm causing him to drop his own blade. As Penrose cried out in pain clutching his hand, Tyron struck him in the face with the hilt of his sword and the Captain fell on his knees. Penrose got over the pain and found himself with Tyron's blades crossed at his neck. Penrose closed his eyes accepting his fate. But before the Blackreyne could finish him off one of Penrose's men came up from behind and stabbed Tyron in the back of the throat. Tyron stood there for a moment as if trying to fugure out what just happened. Tyron's body swayed as he locked eyes with Penrose, disbelief written all over his face. then with a gargled gasp, Tyron Blackreyne crumpled to the floor.

When Argella saw Tyron fall she screamed in anguish, and she and the stranger's sons began fighting their way towards his body. Argella reached Tyron, and dropped to her knees, tears rolling down her face. She cradled his head as her love choked on his life blood. Now both sides were fighting over the body of Tyron. In his last moments Tyron caressed her face with a bloody hand. He let out a sigh as his hand slumped to the floor Tyron Blackreyne died.

By now the last of the Antler guard had been slain, leaving only the Stranger's Sons left, despite the fall of their leader, the Stranger's Sons continued to fight now with more fervor than ever. Unfortunately it did little good, the superior numbers of the loyalists overwhelmed them. One by one the Strangner's Sons fell until the only one left alive was Argella Durrendon, who was still cradling Tyron in her lap.

Penrose marched forward and grapped the grieving queen by her hair. Argella cried out and took hold of her hair to stop the pain. Penrose dragged her from the throne and threw her to his remaining men. "Strip her bind her and gage her," he commanded. "Then put her on a cart so we can deliver her to Aegon."

"What about him," one guard gestured to Tyron's corpse.

"Feed his flesh to the fish of the sea and the birds of the air," Penrose said his voice dripping with contempt.

Penrose looked around and noticed his men were hesitant to follow the last order. "What about his brothers, a guard objected fearfully. "We should at least sent his bones to them."

"This man doesn't deserve such a courtesy," Penrose snarled.

"But captain," the man continued, "we have families."

Penrose turned on the guard and gestured to the other dead bodies. "WHAT OF THEIR FAMILIES?" He roared, "ALL THIS BLOODSHED CPULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED IF NOT FOR THE ARROGANCE OF ARGELLA AND HER HUSBAND. DO AS I COMMAND OR YOU SHALL JOIN THEM."

Ther guards looked at each other and reluctantly obeyed. Penrose smirked as he knew the rewards that awaited him when the targaryens saw the gifts he was about to present them.


	12. Field of Fire

Brandon Snow

It is said that one can feel the death of their twin from half the world away. It seemed to be so for the Blackreyne twins Ciron and Tyron. Ciron rode with the Northern Army under King Torrhen. they were a day past the twins when Ciron felt a sudded wave of agony. He fell from his horse catching the attention of King Torrhen, and his commanders. Ciron was on hNorthern Army under King Torrhen. they were a day past the twins when Ciron felt a sudded wave of agony. He fell from his horse catching the attention of King Torrhen,is knees clutching his chest and growling from pain.

Torrhen's brother Brandon Snow knelt beside his friend with great concern. "What's wrong Ciron, are you ill?"

Ciron looked at Brandon and shook his head before turning back to the ground. Brandon took a closer look and saw tears staring to build in his eyes. Brandon pressed him gently, "what happened Ciron?"

Ciron looked back at Brandon and spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. "My brother is dead."

Brandon didn't need to ask which one had died, only the death of a twin could have such an effect on someone like Ciron Blackreyne. Brandon placed a hand on his friends back as Ciron stared at the ground breathing heavily. But something else disturbed him, at Ciron's second glance, Brandon noticed something in his eyes, something he had never seen before in their many years, something dark, sinister, cold.

The last time the twins saw each other was shortly before Aegon began his conquests. It was during the council between Torrhen Stark, Dalton Blackreyne and Argilac Durrendon. The Blackreyne Brothers hadn't seen each other in ten years so the reuinion was as happy as can be expected. When it came time to depart. Dalton told them he had a gift for their nameday which was in a fortnight.

Without a word Ciron stalked off, Brandon quietly followed from a distance. The walked until he came across a nearby stream. then he pulled out his dagger. Fearing that he was going to kill himself, Brandon stepped forward to stop him. But before he could reach him Ciron took the blade to his hair and sliced a lock off. It was the lock that Ciron dyed Black in order to differentiate himself from Tyron. Unlike the rest of his hair which was cut short like Tyron's, Ciron had the dark lock grown long until it was a foot long. It wasn't just to eliminate confision, that lock was his identity, and now it was severed. Ciron gripped it tightly in his left hand as he stared at the flowing water of the stream. Finally Ciron turned and walked back to the army. Brandon realized that his old friend would never be the same again.

Orys

After the battle of the Last Storm Aegon and his brothermarched on Storm's End. After the death of Argilac. most of the Stormlords had bend the knee to Aegon. the battlehad been costly but Aegon's ranks had swelled to 15,000 strong. Aegon felt that with the stormlands now behind him and Balerion the last Bastion of House Durrendon would fall swiftly.

However when they finally arrived, Orys saw that no banners flew over the battlements of the massive fortress, and the gates were wide opened. Orys and Aegon shared a look before advancing. They entered the castle and made their way to the courtyard. Here they found the Storm's End Garrison, or rather what was left of it standing outside with a figure on it knees before them.

One man obviously the commander of the garrison stepped forward and knelt before Aegon. "Your grace," the man began. "I am Ser Meryn Penrose, as Captain of the Storm's End Garrison I hereby surrender Storm's End to you." He walked over to the figure on it's knees and lifted the head up. Orys realized the figure was a woman with jet black hair. She was trying to cover her nakedness with her hands.

"And as a sign of good faith," Ser Penrose continued. "We also give you the former storm queen Argella Durrendon."

Orys gasped in shock and strode towards her. he lifted her bowed head and looked into her tear soaked eyes brimming with rage. Quickly Orys stood up and stripped off his cloak and covered her with it. Argella didn't try to wrap it around as she remained where she was.

He regarded her for a moment and before Penrose could say anything. Orys wheeled around and struck him as hard as he could. The powerful blow sent Penrose flying. Penrose struggled to his knees spitting out blood and teeth as he looked at Orys in disbelief.

"That girl is the daughter of your king!" Orys roared, "HAVE YOU NO REGARD FOR HER HONOR."

"S-she wouldn't s-surrender," Penrose tried to explain. "She m-might have k-killed us all."

While this was happening Aegon was looking around and noticed a lack of a second prisoner. "Where is Tyron Blackreyne?"

"He will not trouble you anymore." Penrose answered.

Aegon burned when he heard this and landed a kick to Penrose stomach, causing the man to keel over gasping for breath."

"STUPID ANIMAL," Aegon thundered. "I wanted him alive!"

Aegon whirled around and mounted Balerion. "Can you manage here brother?"

Orys nodded, "absolutely, congradulations your grace Storm's End is yours."

Aegon frowned, "I wish it was under better circumstances." He said bitterly and with a kick Aegon flew off.

"Give me the keyes to the chains NOW." Orys ordered.

The garrison hastened to obey and unchained Argella. Orys turned to his men, "go to her chambers and find her something to cover herself." He turned to the now terrified garrison. "I'm sure these fine men would be more than happy to escort you."

The men of the garrison nodded and led the way. Orys knelt down and as gently as he could lifted Argella up and took her to one of the chambers.

Once Argella was decent Orys had her brought to the dining room. Wine was brought up along with a small meal.

When he offered her wine, she just curled up in her chair and shook her head. Orys sighed, this wasn't the woman he had met in their first visit to Storm's End. That woman looked regal, proud, strong and fierce, now all that was left of her was an empty broken shell. "I am truly sorry for what happened to you." He tried to explain.

"Why would you be?" Argella wondered her voice dripping with venom.

"Because it was cruel and dishonorable beyond measure." Orys replied, "No woman deserves to be treated like that. Especially not a queen, and certainly not after the death of their beloved."

"T-they k-killed him," the former storm queen rasped, "they killed T-Tyron. They didn't even have the decency to return his bones to his family, they just dumped him off the wall like the contents of a chamber pot."

Orys frowned, that was ill done, he was now reconsidering sparing them. "I swear the men will pay for this outrage."

Argella looked at him coldly. "Why should I trust the word of the man who killed my father."

"Your father died the way he lived," Orys replied, "On-"

"-his own terms," Argella finished. "My husband said those exact words to me when we learned of my father's death."

"You truly loved him didn't you?"

Argella nodded, "it doesn't matter now does it. My father is dead, my love is dead, I've lost my crown, my home and the house of Durrendon will go extinct. As for me I shall be sold to you like livestock forced in a marraige to act like an ever dutiful wife."

Orys shook his head, "no Argella, it doesn't have to be that way."

"It's not like I have a choice," Argella quipped.

"You do have a choice," Orys stood up and looked out the window. "Aegon will make me Lord Paramount of Storm's End. But there will still be those who name me usurper. If I were to marry you it would silence many of those voices. I will not force you into a marraige you do not want. Say the word and I shall send you to Arnor. The Blackreynes will treat you well and maybe one day help you take back your seat. Is that what you want?"

Argella noted him for a moment and drew herself up her eyes never leaving Orys'. "Storm's End is my home, it belongs to House Durrendon. I am the last of the Line of Durrendon Orys , I was born in this castle and so I will die the lady of this castle. I will not flee my home for anything even pride." She placed an hand on the table. "I consent to marry you," Argella declared. "On one condition."

Orys straightened up, "name it."

Argella's eyes narowed and Orys finally saw the woman she had once been. "Give the garrison to the Blackreynes. Let them avange their brother."

Orys stared at her for a moment and finally nodded with a small smile. "I can do that."

When Penrose and the rest of the garrison learned what their fates would be they panicked and pleaded for mercy. "We gave you storm's end and prevented you from suffering losses in taking it," Penrose protested. "I thought you and your king would express some apprieciation. Is death to be our reward for our show of loyalty?"

Orys whirled around in anger, He grabbed Penrose by the collar and lifted him up. "You speak of loyalty Penrose, yet you were so eager to betray your queen so shortly after the demise of her beloved father. Then to top it all, you had the audacity to treat her in such a shamful manner. Since you were so willing to turn against the last ruler of Storm's End I don't exactly feel safe with you in my castle."

"Do you have any Idea what they will do to us?" He protested weakly.

Orys regarded him coldly,"you whould have thought of that before you dishonored my future wife."

Orys turned to his commander, "throw them into the cells where they belong." The man nodded and with that Orys' men dragged the treacherous men away.

Dalton

Ciron was not the only Blackreyne to feel Tyron's death, thousands of miles away, in Arnor. Dalton Blackreyne stood on the balcony of his chambers barechested watching the storm that raged tonight, streaks of red and blue lightning cut across the darkened sky in a frightening yet wonderous display. Thunder rolled in from the nearby mountains despite the strength of the fortress, Dalton could still feel the vibrations caused by the thunder's roar through his bared feet. 'The thestrals are angry tonight,' Dalton knew. These storms often came to the Sentinal Isles, it was during such events that Dalton unchained the Thestrals and allowed them to roam free since they could do so without being seen. It also explained the streaks of lightning which were too frequent follow the natural pattern. Thestrals were formidable, but it was during Storms like this was when they were at their strongest. As though they drew power from it.

In watching the storm, Dalton went into a trance his breathing deepened as he inhaled and exhaled slowly. In the trance Dalton saw a thestral surrounded by wraiths with spears. The wings of the thestral appeared to be burned and broken. The waiths drew closer , their spears neared the thestral. The threstral roared, spitting and biting down many wraiths, but for every one that died two more replaced it. Behind the Thestral was a wounded doe which was backed to a corner crying out in pain. The spears of the wraiths finally touched the thestrals hide. the wraiths paused for a moment, then with a cry, they thrust their spears in impaling the Thestral, the thestral gave a roar of defiance before crumpling to the ground an ever growing pool of blood seeped around it. The doe who simply layed down and let her fur soak in it.

A boom of thunder snapped Dalton out of his trance, his eyes narrows and he clanched his fist, he realized what the dream meant and what had happened tonight. His ears catch a faint sound. Dalton turned his head slightly and spies Daala coming up beside him with only a thin sheet to cover her otherwise naked body. Daala traces her hand down his back as she rested her head on Dalton's shoulders. "Come back to bed," she cooed, "you're thinking too much about this war."

Dalton sighed, "I cannot do that darling, I do not know how this will turn out but regardless of the outcome of this war everything will be different. Westeros will never be the same again."

"Then it's a good thing we Blackrenes are easily adaptable," She replied with a sly smile.

Dalton returned the smile and grasped her hand. "I suppose you're right," he said. But that doesn't stop me from worrying."

Daala guided Dalton back to the bed and he layed there with his head on her lap. "I must ask, Daala said after a moment. "Why are you so adament on marrying lady Rhaenys. I've seen the Targaryens, and I think Visenya would be a better match. You two have more in common."

Dalton shrugged, "perhaps too alike in my opinion." Daala gave him a curious look as her brother continued. "Visenya Targaryen is a martial woman, dark, serious, like fire. In other words she is a female version of me. But that creates a problem, when two minds think alike it makes decisions boring and too simple. Rhaenys is one of those things, she is spirited, playful and sweet. Yet she is not without ferocity, and that is what I need. I need someone who will question my decision. Someone who's nature tempers my own. Both of us together would make a good influence on our children should the Titans will it. Also I saw her once when she and her family visited the Arbor and I was convinced i was looking at a goddess. I swear to my grave I will never know a fairer woman."

Dawn had broken the day after when Dalton recieved the news that confirmed his fear. He quickly called a council of the family. As they sat at the table Dalton eyed them grimly, most trying to shake off sleep. Malgus was the first to speak, "this better be important for you to call us from snoozeland," he grumbled.

Dalton put his hands on the table the sighed, "Tyron is dead." The silence that followed seemed to last forever. Daala was in shock, Malgus snarled, Veiga's eyes flashed dangerously. Cora and Tara gasped before weeping softly, Jangus and Dalton remained indifferent.

"How?" Veiga growled.

Dalton frowned. Tha Storm's End Garrison betrayed Argella shortly after, her father's death at the Battle of the Last Storm. Tyron was slain along with her personal escort and Argella's Antler Guard."

"What of Argella?" Jangus asked

Dalton frowned, "the Storm's end garrison stripped her naked and gave her to the dragon lord and his bastard in chains."

Malgus banged his fist on the table causing it to shake and creating a loud boming noise that echoed across the room. "FILTHY ANDAL WORMS," he roared. "WE'LL WATER THE EARTH WITH THEIR BLOOD FOR THIS!"

Jangus nodded in agreement. "The lesser beasts can't stand the idea of being ruled by a woman so the moment another prospect presented itself they tucktail and turn cloak."

"Without the Stormlands our army will be smaller," Veiga noted before turning to Dalton. "How do you wish to deal with this development?"

Dalton shook his head, "there is nothing we can do about the Stormlands now," Dalton said with a dangerous calm in his voice. "But rest assured brothers and sisters, vengence will be ours in time,"

"So what are your orders Dalton?" Daala asked.

Dalton turned to Malgus. "Take command of the Blackwater Fleet and give the Dragonlord's fleet the warmest unwelcome." Malgus stood and bowed, "it will be done Brother," he said with a sadistic grin.

Before he could take his leave a steward entered the war room. "Pardon my king but a Greenseer is here to see you."

The Blackreynes all stood up and Dalton gave a gesture with his hand, "grant him entry."

The Greenseer entered, it was truly an honor for the Blackreynes to recieve a visit from an 'ancient.' He was small only a child to the eyes of most. His head barely reached Dalton's hip. His ears were large and his beard was long indicating his advanced age. Like most greenseers, hie eyes were blood red with cat-like slits. His skin was nut-brown and his hands held four digits that ended in black claws. The greenseer's attire was made of bark and leaves, as was the hooded cloak he wore. The staff his bore was taller than him and was a sign of his position as well as prop for age. All in all an unimpressive looking figure, but the Blackreynes, as all Arnorians knew. this race held great power, they were the stewards of all the earth and they deserved all manner of respect.

He was accompanied by 6 wood dancers armed with obsidian daggers and weirwood bows. As soon as he entered the Blackreynes bowed in unision. Dalton then greeted the ancent using Old Tongue, "noble ancient, welcome to Arnor."

The greenseer bowed his head respectfully and climbed up to the round table so that he was at eye level with the Blackreyne King. "I trust your journey was not too troublesome," Dalton continued.

"It went smoothly, thank you King Dalton," the Greenseer replied, "I am very sorry to learn about the recent passing of your brother, You may call me Frost."

Dalton nodded, "as you wish Frost and I thank you for your condolences. So what brings the leader of the ancients so far from the forests."

"I know you are about go to war with the dragons."

There was silence before Dalton broke it, "if you are concerned about the well being of your people and homes Frost I assure you we will ensure their safety as we always have."

Frost was silent for a moment before speaking again. "It is not our longavity that concerns us but what you intend to do when he arrives."

Dalton was confused for a moment, "I am not sure what you mean."

Frost frowned, "we know what you have King Dalton, we know the secret you have kept from the world for 8 millenias."

Dalton finally understood, "You have come about our thestrals."

Frost nodded, 'You have withheld a great and terrible power for a long time, We are concerned about a greater conflict that may arise should you reveal it to your fellow men. Particularly with your powerful countrymen in the Far east of Essos."

Daltoneyes widened in realization and sluped back into his seat, "House Whitehall."

Frost nodded, "if your people ever go to war again it will tear the land apart until it's nothing but ash and bones."

"That will not happen," Dalton declared. "While it is true we are bitter enemies, the Whitehalls of Eridon hold your people in reverence as we do. Whatever out grievances we will not settle them in you lands or any other, we shall not have a repetition of the what happened to our homeland."

Frost studied him for a moment before speaking again, "if you say so," he said calmly, "but what of the dragons."

"Our Thestrals will be used solely to make sure they do not overstep themselves, we have never abused the power given to us for 8 thousand years, we shall not do so today. If you do not wish us to reveal them then we shall honor that request. "

Frost nodded, "very well, then you have my blessing to do as you wish," he held out his hand. Dalton took it and placed it at his forehead. and with that Frost and his guards left the room. When they were out of earshot one of the Wood dancer spoke up.

"Are you sure that is wise, letting them wield such power."

Frost turned to him, "What ever sins they may commit in the future, they will never compare to our own sins my friend. I wonder if they ever learned the truth about what our own sins have done. Will they ever forgive us?"

After the ancients had left, Dalton raised his goblet. "To Tyron," he roared, "may he ride with the Titans in the Apokalyx everlasting."

As he said this his siblings followed his leadand raised their goblets, "TYRON!" and they all drained their cups.

Malgus set his goblet down and left to follow through on his brother's command. Dalton turned to his youngest brother, "Jangus I am leaving you in charge of Arnor in our absence. You have proven your worth in the past and I expect you to do so now." Jangus gave a curt nod indicating he understood his duty, He was a very private man and only spoke when he absolutely had to. But he was capable and would not yied to anyone but his siblings.

Dalton now focused on the rest of his siblings, "the rest of us will fly to the Gods Eye and meet with the rest of our forces, Lord Justinian already expects our arrival."

After the council meeting everyone was making preparations to leave for the Gods Eye donning armour and weapons and unchaining their thestrals. Dalton and Daala were already prepared so they took a long walk down one of the many halls. Of all his siblings Daala was his closest confident

"Ciron will not take the death of his brother well," Daala said.

Dalton nodded, "they are two halves of the same whole, without one the other will fall to pieces."

"Is there anything we can do for him?"

Dalton was silent for a moment, "I don't know, I guess it will depend on what kind of person he is when we meet again."

Sharra

"Mother, will the dragon really come here?"

Young Ronnel was seated on her lap as she read of news from the south. She smiled down at the boy and stroked his hair. "I don't know Ronnel, We will just have to wait and see."

"I want to flyin on the dragon," he said. "The image of her son on the back of a dragon both terrified her and brought a smile to her face.

"Don't be stupid Ron," another voice said. "You can't ride a dragon, you're too little and no dragon would waste their time on you."

"Shut up Jonos," Ronnel shot out, "if anyone is stupid here it's you."

"The dragon may fly up here like the winged knight did on a giant falcon

"The dragons can't get us," Jonos declared. The Eyrie is impregnable no one can touch us everyone says so."

"Boys, boys" Sharra said sharply, that's quite enough, now either you behave or there will be no sweets tonight." Her sons sulkily promised to behave and went to the inner courtyard to play.

When news reached Sharra Arryn of the Death of the last Storm king, she grew fearful. Argilac was one of the most beligerant Monarchs of the time. A seasoned warrior and a proven commander. Yet it wasn't Argilac's death that made her so fearful, it was the fate of his daughter. If the stormlords were so eager to overthrow her what was to stop the vale lords from doing the same to her.

Ever since the Last Storm Sharra doubled her efforts in preparing the Vale's defences. The Vale army of 30,000 was amassed at the Bloody Gate and the garrisons at the Gates of the Moon, the waycastles and the Eyrie itself were tripled now numbering 10,000 men in total. Sharra smirked, say what you wanted about the Blackreynes but they knew fortifications. Even thousands of years later the Gates of the Moon was the same as it was when House Blackreyne occupied it. It barely needed any form a repair or modifications.

Yet she still had reason to worry. After Marla Sunderland fled the Eyrie to join Aegon, Sharra wondered how many other houses would also rally to Aegon. It is well know that the woman wanted revenge on the Blackreynes for driving her and her people off the three islands they had called home for eons. Sharra had refused to help her retake them, and things had been stormy ever since.

"The Last Dance of the Sisters as it was called was the last war fought between the North and the Vale. Pirates from the sisters had went too far when they attacked a ship coming from Bloodstone to White Harbor. That ship just happend to be carrying Dalton Blackreyne's uncle Harron. In retaliation, House Blackreyne launched total war on the sistermen. Driving them off the islands and establishing a new Blackreyne colony right there in the bite. When the Vale tried to intervene, Dalton captured Gulltown the Gates of the Moon and Waycastle Stone. Sharra had begged her husband not to go to war with the Blackreynes knowing it was folly. But the prideful man refused to listen. Sharra's husband was slain by Dalton himself during the war leaving his widow the Queen Regent of the Vale. Sharra agreed to leave the Three Sisters in exchange for the return of their settlements.

The Last Dance of the Sister effectively ended the hostilities between the two kingdoms for good. The islands now acted as a buffer zone between the them and the Blackreynes gained yet again another foothold in Westeros.

As she overlooked the defenses from the gatehouse, she considered writing to Dalton to see if his alliance proposal was still open. Despite what the the rulers of the seven kingdoms disagreed on one thing was certain. None of them wanted to loose their crowns. Dalton had seen this coming and tried to warn us about it. Now this dragonlord was picking off the divided kingdoms one by one it would not be long before they came to hers. Perhaps if they had agreed it would have deterred Aegon from invading. None of that matters now, one kingdom had fallen only six to go.

As she dwelt on this she heard a screech come from the sky. Sharra looked up and saw what she thought was a falcon soaring overhead. But as she took a closerlook she realized the shape was wrong it seemed more Bat like with a neck and a very long tail. Sharra's eyes widened as she realized what it was, "Dragon." she whispered as she saw it head straight for the courtyard were her sons were playing.

Sharra rushed to the courtyard as fast as she could with over a dozen guards following. "how could I be so stupid," she beat herself mentally. "Dragons don't need to bother themselves with castles and forts and armies. Dragons fly."

When she reached the courtyard the sight before her caught her by surprise. Ronnel was sitting on Visenya Targaryen's Lap staring up at the magnificenty dragon before him. When Sharra finally noted the Dragon, she too was mesmirized by it.

Ronnel then turned to his mother with a grin on his face. "Mother, can I go flying with the lady?" he asked.

Sharra was unable to respond at first, her eyes darted fearfully between her son and the Targaryen queen. She knew Visenya could easily kill her son with a simgle strike. She then locked eyes with Visenya, hey eyes screaming a silent plea, "please don't hurt my son." Visenya returned the gaze, her own eyes saying, 'I have no intention on doing so.'

"Your son will be safe I assure you," Visenya said with a smile.

Sharra stared at the younger woman, if not for the circumstances, Sharra would have been giving her looks of admiration. Dalton had told her that Visenya is a renowned warrior, now seeing her in her chainmail and the sword Dark Sister strapped to her hip. She saw strength in the Targaryen queen and eyes that burned with passion. and after a moment she smiled at Visenya. She then turned to her son and nodded. To this day Sharra swore her son's smile was never bigger.

Sharra watched as her son flew higher and higher into the air, even from so far down Sharra could hear Ronnel's laughter. Off to the side Sharra noticed Jonos was staring after his brother, his arms were crossed ans the look of jealousy was written all over his face

Rhaenys

While Visenya succeeded in securing the Vale for her brother, Rhaenys was having no such lock in Dorne. No matter where she went, every settlement, every castle was all but abandoned. Frustrated Rhaenys flew to Sunspear itself. she met no resistance as she was escorted to the throne room by the Princess's handmaidens. Rhaenys found Princess Meria sitting on her throne waiting for her. It was quite a site Rhaenys slender and beautiful with hair that spilled past her hips. While Meria Martell was eighty years of age, fat and blind with sagging skin and a balding head.

Meria smiled knowing who had arrived. "Hello 'your grace,'" she said with mocked pleasantness. "I trust your conquest of my humble kingdom is not going as planned."

Rhaenys smirked and the old woman as she strode forward. "Your people only prolong the inevitable, Princess Meria. Dorne will not be able to resist the might of the dragons."

Meria's smile broadened. "I shall not fight you," she replied. "But I will not kneel to you either, Dorne has no king, Dorne needs no king. Tell your brother that."

Rhaenys returned the smile. "I shall and when we return we shall bring with us fire and blood."

Meria chuckled. "your House words," she acknowledged. "Our words are Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken. "You may can burn us my lady, but you will not bend us, break us or make us bow. "This is Dorne Rhaenys Targaryen, and you are not welcome here. Return at your own peril."

Rhaenys eyes narrowed, and with a scoff she whirled around and stalked off back to her dragon. Meria smiled, "what I would give to see the look on her brother's face when he sees what the Blackreynes have in store for him."

Loren Lannister

The Battle of the Last Storm had sent shockwaves through much of the west. With the Fall of House Durrendon. the kings in the west reralized that they would be next. Determined not to be brought down so easily Loren I Lannister, the King of the Rock met with Mern IX Gardener, King of the Reach. Together the two monarchs forged an alliance and assembled their armies forming one of the largest host in Westeros at the time. The two armies met at the Castle Goldengrove numbering 80,000 Strong. Including 30,000 westermen and 50,000 Reachmen. Between them the host had 10,000 knights, this would be their Iron fist to Crush Aegon's meager host. Daragons can burn any army but only an army can hold territory.

King Mern was enormously pleased with himself. "We outnumber the Targaryens 4 to 1 your grace," he declared to Loren. "Soon we will crush his army and bring to an end the adventures of this Valyrian Pretender."

King Loren smirked, he too was sure of success. The skys were clear so their 10,000 archers would find easy targets in the Targaryen's enourmous dragons. "This indeed will be a day long remembered your grace," he said. Loren raised his goblet to propose a toast. "I do believe this is the Start of a beautiful friendship. Once my eldest daughter is wed to your eldest son, it will secure the bond between our houses for generations."

KIng Mern smiled, "nothing would make me happier my friend." He raised his own goblet and the two kings clashed them together and took a drink. "To a fruitful and prosperous alliance." Arround them Lannister and Gardener Lords followed their kings' example.

The Great Western Host marched to meet Aegon. The dragon King had the smaller host which meant that he was able to move across the reach more swiftly. When the two armies finally did meet, The Western Host, in a stroke of luck was able to take the highground with meant that King Loren and King Mern were now looking down at the Targaryen's smaller force.

Sice King Merns had committed more men to the host it was decided that he would command the center riding alongside nearly all of his male kin. King Loren commanded the rear. Little did they know was that the King of the Rock had done this deliberately. The plan was simple. Their Iron fist of Lords and knights would pierce through the Targaryen center. The reachmen would smash Aegon's right flank while the Westermen smashed the left.

Seeing that his opponent had the high ground. Aegon deployed his army in a cresent formation with the typical Pikes in front and archers behind with cavalry in the flanks. just out of sight Aegon along with his sisters, mounted their dragons and waited for the right moment to strike.

The Horns sounded end the Tyrell/Lannister host charged. King Mern's plan seemed to be going well. The Iron fist smashed through Aegon's ranks like cheese decimating his center. While the Targaryen fanks were able to hold firm it seemed that they were about to be crushed under the Lannister/Tyrell flanks which were slowly closing in.

But just as it seemed that the Targaryen host would be crushed, an ungodly roar could be heard above. Loren looked up and saw three dark shapes in the sky. Loren saw the shapes grow larger and larger. Loren looked down at the battlefield, he knew what those shapes were.

Aegon and his sisters descended upon the battle on their three dragons. Below the the Iron fist had broken through, that is where Aegon chose to focus his attack. Aegon raised his sword Blackfyre and roared a single word "DRACARYS."

The moment he said this, Balerion, Meraxes and Vhagar unleashed a torrent of flames on the Lannister Gardener host, bathing the men in fire. Loren could hear the screams of the thousands dying, Not just Mern's men but his own. The ironfist shattered as the flames panicked their mounts and many were crushed in the styampede that ensued.

In an attempt to save his men Loren ordered his archers to loose their arrows at the dragons above. While the Dragons may be impervious to arrows, their riders were not. Visenya Targaryen was hit in the shoulder and she was forced to land to be treated. But it did little good, with the ironfist broken and the rest of their host in full retreat, Loren realized the battle was lost. With no choice left to him, King Loren Lannister raised the flag of surrender.

By the battles end, the Targaryens lost just over a thousand men mostyfrom the crushing blow from the Iron Fist and the archer. Dispite this the grand host of Lannister and Gardener suffered far greater, 10,000 men had been slain. 7,000 by dragonfire and 3,000 from arms. Among the Slain was most of the Iron fist and King Mern Gardener with all his male kin, including his sons, grandsons, brothers, cousins, uncles and nephews. This Battle effectively ended the once great line of House Gardener. This battle would be known in history as the Field of Fire

The Next Day King Loren dressed in his finest and rode out to meet Aegon. The Targaryen King stood there with his dragon Balerion behind him. King Loren dismounted took off his crown, unsheathed hos sword and placed them both at Aegon's feet."

"King Aegon," he began, "I now pledge fealty to you and your house, my sword is your and my men are yours, from this day until the end of days."

Aegon noted the former king before smiling and making an upward gesture with his hand, "Rise, then Lord Lannister, in recognition of your oath of fealty, I do this day name you Lord Paramount of the Westerlands, and Warden of the East."

With the victory at the Field of Fire, the bennermen from the Westerlands and the Reach quickly followed Loren Lannisters example. House Hightower, the rulers of Oldtown Welcomed the Targaryen's with open arms. House Tyrell, the 'loyal' stewards of House Gardener bend the knee to Aegon instantly and was appointed Lords Paramont of the Reach and Warden's of the South.

Aegon

The victory at the Field of fire was now a pleasant memory for him. In one swoop he had brought two powerful kingdom's to heel. Now he had 4 of the 7 kingdoms in the fold. Aegon had been dissappointed when he learned that Rhaenys had been unsuccessful in securing Dorne, but it mattered little to Aegon at the moment. Dorne was considered the least of the seven kingdoms and they too would be brought to heel in time. But for now it was time to rest and think. Their was still two more kings to tame and Aegon knew he needed to ready himself for this final push.

To do this he took residence in Oldtown to gather his forces, his sister Visenya was still revovering from the wound she recieved in battle. She had been lucky an inch to the left and it would have punctured a lung. Aegon had stayed at her bedside for days holding her hand.

As Aegon waited for his sister to recover, he recieved a visitor, The High Septon of the Faith. The old man was dressed in flowing robes and wore a crystal crown upon his head. It is said he had locked himself in the sept and prayed for seven days and nights before coming out and proclaiming Aegon the rightful ruler of Westeros. He annointed Aegon with holy oils as Aegon chose to Convert to the Faith of Seven

The High septon bowed as he entered the room, "good morning King Aegon, may I take a seat."

Aegon offered hin a chair which the man took, "how may I help you today your holiness."

The High Septon sat up straight. "As you must know the Faith of the Seven is the only true religion. The others are naught but false idols. The Red God, the Tree Gods, the Titans, the River Gods and yes even your gods of Valyria."

"Mind your tongue old man," Aegon growled, "I may have converted to the Faith but I will not permit you to insult the gods of my people."

"Of course," The high Septon evaded any apology much to Aegon's annoyance. "My point is, your invasion is not only political but also spiritual, Four thousand sof years the barbaric North and Troyad have prevented us from spreading our faith to every part pf westeros. For too long they committed blasphemy's and atrocities beyond count. Despite our best effort they continue to practice their heathen ways with no repentance."

Aergon smirked, "If they are so terrible, they why do the gods you claim are true refuse to strike them down like the 'heathens' they are."

The High Septon frowned "It is not out place to question the gods least of all yours. The crone had shown us they way, you are the one who is destined to bring the Houses of Blackreyne ans Stark to heel. Once that had happened we can spread the word of the faith freely without persecusion."

Aegon now understood, "so you want me to destory your enemies for you, and what do I get in return."

The High Septon smiled, "a great holy army, help us in this righteous crusade amnd every sword of the Faith will be at your beck and call."


	13. Troyad

Journey to Troyad

Aegon sat atop a chair forged from the swords of his conquered enemies, by his side Balerion laid with his head next to his master, Aegon placed his hand on the dragon's head as he overlooked a great city where millions of people cheered and screamed his name. He watched as the High Septon and a hundred lords bowed their heads to the new king.

Suddenly the sky grew dark. grey clouds blocked the sun as lightning flashed like mad across the sky. As the lightning flashed Aegon thought he saw the silhouettes of men on horseback, Aegon mounted his dragon and flew up to get a closer look. as he drew near to the silhouettes, they became sharper. Suddenly the shadow riders turned towards him and charged. Instinctively Balerion saw them and let loose a stream of flame. When the dragon had finished the flames seemed to brush the clouds away as well as the riders leaving only their steeds, One shadow horse, trotted slowly towards him he seemed to grow bigger and biggeruntil Balerion seemed like a hatchling in comparison. It reared up and from its flanks, a pair of wings spread out and shadow steed's eyes flashed with fire and a blue light erupted from its mouth straight at Aegon.

Aegon bolted awake, his forehead beading with sweat. Beside him his sister wives were awakened by the sudden movement and they placed their hands on his shoulders.

"Same dream," Rhaenys asked.

Aegon nodded his breathing starting to level out. "Ever since I planned this invasion I keep having the dreams every night."

"I think your dream is trying to tell you something," Visenya remarked. "It most likely has something to do with the Blackreynes."

Aegon nodded, "I have a terrible feeling about this, the sooner we end it the better."

At Oldtown Aegon and his sisters met with their war council Those present were his sister wives Visenya and Rhaenys, Orys Baratheon, the High Septon, Loren Lannister and Harlen Tyrell.

"How are the preparations going?" He commanded

Loren looked solemn as he spoke, "Your grace, I regret to inform you that House Reyne has chosen defiance and has marched to join House Blackreynes cause."

"Then the Reynes shall pay for their disloyalty," Aegon snarled.

"I fear it gets worse brother," Visenya said, everyone turned to him as the queen gave her report, "I received word from Sharra Arryn that House Royce has also rebelled and is marching to Join the Blackreynes."

Aegon slammed his fist into the table causing goblets to spill and plates to shake. "TREASON," he roared, "HOW CAN THESE HOUSE DEFY THEIR LORDS HAVE THEY NO CONTROL OVER THEM?!"

"Considering who they are it is not very surprising," Orys said quietly, everyone turned to him and he continued. "The Royces and Reynes have been friends with the Blackreynes for thousands of years, their bond with them is as strong as the Starks. Not even war has been able to sever it, especially given their blood ties."

Harlen Tyrell and Loren Lannister could not help but agree, "Indeed in fact the Reynes themselves are a cadet branch of the Blackreynes and have strong blood ties." Loren added

Aegon sighed and shook his head, "how many men?"

"About 10,000 each brother," Visenya replied

Aegon waved it off, "it no longer matters how many allies come to their aid," he declared. They will pay for their treachery in time."

The lords nodded as Aegon turned to Orys, "how are the preparations going?"

"We are still equipping the men moreso now that the faith militant has joined us, Thus far they have given us 70,000 poor fellows, and 7,700 Warriors Sons."

He frowned and Aegon did the same. "Is that a problem?"

Orys's lip curled, "The Warriors Sons seem capable enough, but the poor fellows-" Orys shook his head, those are not soldiers, just little more than peasants."

The High Septon looked offended, "the swords and stars are the soldiers of the seven. They will dispence justice to all and bring an end to the heresy that has plagued Westeros."

Before he could rant any further, a squire came in, "Your grace Lord Daemon is here."

"What is it Daemon? Aegon asked urgently, realizing something was wrong

"Your grace," Daemon panted, "our fleet is gone."

Aegon's eyes narrowed, "what do you mean it's gone."

"Longboats came in the dead of night, they boarded our ships before we could raise the anchor. At first I was confused that they had not burned many ships, that was when I realised. They didn't come to destroy our fleet, they came to steal it. soon we were fighting for possession of our own ships."

"Was Dalton Blackreyne leading them?" Visenya asked.

Daemon shook his head, "No my queen, but the man leading them was a giant, larger than my stallion. He brought down the mast of one ship with his bare hands and used it as a bridge to cross over to another ship."

Lord Lannister and Lord Tyrell looked at each other and nodded, "Malgus."

"Who?" Rhaenys asked.

"Dalton Blackreyne's second youngest brother," Loren explained. "The size bear and just as strong. He's a madman in combat, only Dalton surpasses him."

"Great," Daemon threw his hands in the air, "our entire fleet taken by a hulking brute."

Lord Lannister shook his head, "make no mistake Lord Velaryon, he may be a brute but he's no imbecile. Malgus has a good mind for war albeit not nearly on the same level as Dalton but enough to be a threat.

"It doesn't matter," Aegon declared, "let Dalton enjoy these meager victories while he still can. Now that half of Westeros is under our rule we can now march on Troyad."

"They still refuse to surrender?" Visenya wondered.

Aegon nodded, "I sent him a raven and he sent one back simply stating that I have his answer. The only condition he will accept is a marriage pact between our two families. So our only option is to take it by force."

"The Blackreynes have never been conquered, some say they can't be conquered." Lord Tyrell pointed out.

"Anyone can be beaten," Aegon insisted. "The Blackrerynes will fall like the Rhoynar and Ghiscari did before my ancestors."

"All the same my king do not underestimate them," Lord Lannister agreed. "The Blackreynes have many powerful friends and they are loyal to each other as we have already seen. the Houses of Blackreyne, Stark, Yronwood, Royce and Reyne are more than just allies they are a brotherhood."

Lord Tyrell nodded, "Lord Lannister speaks the truth. Those houses made a blood pact after our Andal forebears migrated here. It was an oath to never war against each other and to come to each other's aid in a time of need."

"If that is so than why don't they rule their respective kingdoms?" Aegon wondered.

"The oath binds them to protect each other not to directly aid in ambitions," Lord Lannister explained. "Such things must be taken themselves. Even in turmoil House Blackreyne does it's best to aid its allies. When House Teague drove the Blackreynes further and further into the sea it seemed to be their end. Yet when the Warrior Queen Nymeria, came to Dorne and battled the Yronwoods, House Blackreyne though badly weakened kept their oath and King Roger Blackreyne sent his own brother Theodred with 3,000, all he could spare to aid their friends. Though Theodred was eventually slain and King Yorick Yronwood V submitted, because of Theodred, Nymeria's War lasted thirty years. If the Blackreynes mean to defy you that must mean they have a plan to beat you."

Aegon sighed and nodded, If I'm going to conquer Troyad, I must first learn about them and the best thing to do is to travel to Tridenton, not as a conqueror but as a traveller

"You mean to visit Tridenton?" Lord Tyrell wondered.

"Tridenton is meant to be the crown jewel of Troyad," Aegon explained. "Perhaps I may take it as my capital city depending on what I see. Besides it will give me a better understanding of what kind of people these Arnorians are."

As Aegon walked through the camp ne noticed that many of his allies men were quiet. Aegon learned later that they were all nervous about the invasion of House Blackreynes kingdom, they understood the danger it posed despite the fact that they had dragons fighting for them not it did not stop them from worrying.

Moving further he heard a conversation between a grizzled Lannister knight and two of his own men one from house Velaryon and another from House Celtigar. "We'll show those Blackreynes what Valyrians are made of," the Velaryon man said confidently.

The Lannister glared at him, "what do you know about Blackreynes?"

The Velaryon shrugged, "a bunch of warmongering barbarians right?"

"Hmph," the Lannister scoffed, "tell me boy how far can you march in a day."

The Velaryon rubbed his chin, "I don't really know 15, 20 miles I think."

The Lannister smirked, "a Blackreyne regiment can march 50 miles a day for four days straight, AND fight all day on the fifth."

The Celtigar waved it off, "so they can march far it doesn't prove anything."

The Lannister laughed, "I like to hear you say that when you loose an arm. If a Blackreyne got his arm cut off he wouldn't notice until he tried to use it."

"I'm more worried about their archers to be honest," a Tyrell soldier said as he sat next to the Lannister.

The Lannister nodded, "aye the archers. They can pick the wings off a butterfly at 300 meters without killing it. Worse is the ones on horseback, the Arnorian Rangers, they can get you at 500 meters. Gods you have to be dothraki to match them half way."

"Visenya Targaryen was wounded by a mucky shot," the Tyrell added. How much more for them when 50,000 archers will be aiming for them, their dragons may be impervious but they aren't."

This caused Aegon worry, at the Field of Fire the Lannister/Gardener host had only a few thousand archers at best and Visenya was wounded. they came too close to the ground and it was a lucky shot. How much more when the Blackreynes are reputed to have the finest in the world, and they had tens of thousands who will be aiming to kill."

Aegon needed to think carefully about how he was going to handle the King Dalton. He was careless at the field of fire and nealy lost his sister. He vowed not to be so careless again.

And so Aegon his sisters and Orys entered the city, disguised as traveling couples. Tridenton was unlike any city he had ever seen before. It had to be at least thrice the size of Oldtown and what Aegon noted was how organized it was.

The curtain wall was roughly rectangular, 100 feet high and 20 feet thick. While the landlocked walls were perfectly straight, the once facing the river and bay followed the coastline along the sturdy ground. There were towers every 50 feet with huge gatehouses on each side and a maingate that faced Northwest. Aegon then noticed that the gatehouse also served as a barracks for the city guards which by Aegon's estimate numbered 10,000 strong.

Within this curtain wall was an inner wall one that separated the west and north hills from the one overlooking the Rush. When he asked bout it, a man claimed it was the core district, it was where boys marked as soldiers were sent to train. The Core protected the smithies, armories, stables, storehouses, and a library. The core even had temples for the Old Gods, the Rhoyne, R'hllor, and the Triumvirate a dedication to the nationalities that lived under the Blackreynes. Each temple was guarded by men from their respected nationality and anyone who wanted to enter had to set aside their weapons. The core was sparsely populated, and there was room plentiful for more development, Aegon guessed that was the point.

The main port which took up the entirety of the eastern side was meant for the larger ships, 100 such vessels could dock here easily. The river port which took up the south side was reserved for the smaller vessels such as fishing boats, transport barges and sailboats.

None of the buildings were cobbled together like most cities but instead followed a uniformed pattern, and not one was wrought in wood. Every street, every building followed a straight line giving the city a checkered-like look from above. It seemed that the residences occupied the lower parts of the city while the buildings of businesses, Taverns, markets, stores, shops, and brothels were located in the two hills. The houses build against the wall so in a sense they were part of the wall were no lower that 2 stories and each house was large enough to comfortably seat 4 people. There were even larger homes for extended families.

There were no back alleys, narrow corridors or winding streets. The roads were wide enough for two carts to ride side by side. There was also a decent number of wells in fact many residences surrounded them. Large, square and wrought in stone, they were accessable to anyone.

Overall, Aegon was mildly impressed by what he saw, it had no style. But it was clear that this reflected Blackreynes creeds, Efficiency and practicality were the key focuses when building this city. This city wasn't built to look pretty it was build to last.

After visiting Troyad Aegon made his way through Troyad studying the terrain and the people. For a warrior society it seemed that the Arnorians were more developed civilization wise as oppose to it's neighbors. As Aegon made his way through the Troyad towards the God's Eye, Aegon couldn't help but notice a lack of isolated farms or keeps. The keeps he did come across was usually surrounded by a settlement of certain size which is in turn surrounded by farmland.

The other Kingdoms had dozens of different houses, The Troyad mainland once boasted over 90 houses now they had been reduced to 13. Much of this was due to the Teague Uprising which led to the annihilation of many houses including Darry, Ryger and Rosby. The 13 had remained loyal to the Blackreynes and so were named the Faithful. While the other houses still existed in a sense their influence spanned no greater than the walls of the settlements they ruled. Each of the Faithful governed one of the larger settlements and was allowed a small army to act as a watch.

House Justinian of Fairmarket

House Darklyn of Duskendale,

House Mallister of Seaguard

House Mooton of Maidenpoole

House Tully of Mummerton (Mummer's Ford Town)

House Frey of The Twin Towns

House Blackwood of Blackbuckle,

House Bracken of Stone Hedge

House Brune of Crackclaw Point

House Shawney of Paxton

House Butterwell of Saltpans

House Strong of Rosby

House Piper of Pennytree

The Other settlements included Tumbler Falls, Mudgrave, Nutten, Wendish Town, Godsdale (Gods Eye town), Harrowton (Lord Harroway's Town), Moontown, Longtown, Sherrer, Sallydance, Riverbend, Ramsford, , Mousedown Mill, Lambswold, Brindlewood, Hags Mire, Fieldstone, Donnelwood, Crossing Elms, Honeytree, Cairns, Buckle and Sevenstreams. These were rules by lesser houses who answered to the Faithful. Each had a city guard whose size depended on the population and could draft a militia should the need arise.

Two things surprised Aegon about these settlements, one was the way they were built,. Most of them were square-shaped. The notable exception was those located near water in which case one wall would follow the shores. These settlements are protected by 20 foot high walls. There was a gate for each side, and 12 guard towers, one at each corner and two flanking the gates. In addition to the walls the settlements were additionally protected by trench and spike and watchtowers stood in the farmland. It seemed more like a military encampment than a anything. But considering the hardcore military society the Arnorian were this was hardly surprising and admittedly there was some sense to it. After all they didn't have to worry about brigands and raiders and it could repel a small army for a time.

Next was their size and quantity. The largest settlements (not counting Tridenton) Paxton, Maidenpool, Duskendale and Seagard were bigger than Gulltown. Able to house over 200,000 people. Even the smallest settlement was at least the size of Selhorys. If you were to disregard the settlements on the Blackreyne ruled islands, Troyad still had more settlements than the rest of Westeros combined with at least 40 spanning the region.

The farmland Aegon noted was different from that of the Reach. While the Reach grew all manner of fruits, vegetables and orchards. Troyad was mostly grain based. From Corn to wheat, oats, barley and even potatoes. Indeed Troyad seemed to be the continents main supplier of bread and flour.

The final quality that Troyad had was the existence of actual roads. the other kingdoms simply had a clear path with no grass growing and traces of cart tracks. Troyad roads like all Arnorian structures were wrought in cobblestone. It also slimmed the chances of getting lost since the roads connected the settlements together so if you stayed on the road you were bound to come across a settlement eventually

Aegpn had wanted to integrate the town guards into his army but Rhaenys convinced him not to since they were no threat to him. "These men are simply doing their duty to protect the people in these settlements," she said, "it isn't right to take them away from that."

As Aegon talked to the people, he learned more about his enemy. When he asked them how the Blackreynes ruled, the answer was generally the same. Firm but fair, they could hardly be considered kind but they were far from cruel aside from their enemies. Their society was strict but considering the circumstances it was understandable.

Parents told a different story considering their militant ways, fathers were happy about that Arnorian education 'beat the softness out of their sons, while mothers expressed grief that their darling boys fates were being chosen the moment they were born.

It seemed that Dalton had anticipated that Aegon would want the coffers in the cities to fill his own, but asking around he learned that Dalton had already emptied them in preparation for Aegon's arrival.

Despite the claim of being against the faith, Troyad boasted a number of houses that did worship the seven notable of which were Frey, Mooton, Piper and Strong. whos towns seemed to consist of andal citizens who followed the Seven. They claimed that as long as the septons and septas were allowed to preach so long as they were kept in line.

It seemed that their feelings towards the Blackreynes ranged from love to begrudged respect. small wonder they were willing to fight for them now. But he did find a few houses that were interested in joining him though he suspected that it was out of fear od his dragons than out of disloyalty. Houses Towers, Harroway, Lothston and Whent had sent ravens to Aegon declaring their allegiance. Withthis new information Aegon and his siblings returned to Bitterbridge were his main host was camped. This was it what happened at the Gods eyes would decide everything.

Calm before the Storm

Dalton and his sisters arrived at Paxton to see the massive host of Blackreyne and Stark already assembled. Flying their Thestrals during the night allowed them to go unexposed to the encampment. They landed inside the Isle of faces and took a boat to the shore.

Among the banners were the houses of the Iron Islands, Redwyne of the Arbor, Farmen of Fair Island and Woodfoot of Bear Island. Hoare, Greyiron, Blacktyde and Stonetree of the Misty Isles and Houses Codd, Humble and Dryland from the newly acquired Triplets, formerly the Three Sisters. He also saw the Red Lion of House Reyne and the Bronze Runes of House Royce.

Dalton made his way to the stronghold where the commanders were. Along ther way he was greeted by Lord Ronald Reyne and Lord Yonaton Royce.

Dalton smiled, "my lords," he clasped their hands, "I'm delighted to see you will be fighting with us on this historical moment."

The two lords returned the smiles, and Lord Royce spoke. "Your grace, we are here at your disposal, as you know we have never renounced our creed."

Lord Reyne nodded in agreement, "indeed." He looked around and continued, "will Lord Yronwood be joining us?"

Dalton shook his head, "Dorne has successfully defied the dragons, so they will stay and defend the homeland should Aegon return.

The other lords nodded as the three men headed for the council chamber. The King of Winter was already with his main lords and his base-born brother in a heated discussion.

"It is unwise to set ourselves out in the open like this," said Lord Manderly. "We should fall back to Moat Cailin and make our stand there."

"nonsense," roared Lord Umber, "we will fight him here, Northern Valor shall carry the day."

"Not just Northern Valor Lord Umber," Brandon Snow pointed out. "Do not forget the North does not fight alone this time."

"Of course he has not forgotten," Dalton spoke up causing all heads to turn to him. "The North Remembers after all." Torrhen smiled at his friend as Dalton walked up to him and gave hin a curt nod, "King Torrhen."

Torrhen returned the nod, "King Dalton."

"I trust your journey south wasn't too exhausting."

Torrhen shook his head, "it took me some time but, thanks to your warning I was able to gather my full strength and march south without incident."

Dalton nodded in approval, "excellent we will need all the strength we can muster to stop Aegon. But before we discuss further, I must inquire about my brother."

Torrhen nodded understanding, "of course he is in one of the guest chambers." He shook his head sadly, "the poor boy has not taken well since his brother's death."

'That was to be expected,' Dalton thought, as he followed a servant to where Ciron was. Once they were at the door, Dalton dismissed the boy and knocked sharply before heading in without permission.

Ciron was sitting on the railing of the balcony sharpening his sword with a whetstone. He turned upon hearing the noise, his eyes blazing, but they softened somewhat at the sight of his brother. His younger brother had changed since he last saw him, Ciron had become gaunt and his dark gold hair had lost some of its colouring hung limp, but one thing he definitely noticed was that his dyed lock was no longer there. "You cut off your lock," Dalton said.

"I still have it," Ciron muttered reaching into his surcoat and pulling it out braided and tied together. "I just don't need it anymore."

"I sorry we couldn't save him," Dalton replied grimly. "you should know that Orys Baratheon apprehended the men responsible for their mistreatment of Argella, and are currently at Arnor awaiting whatever punishment you see fit."

Ciron shook his head and jumped off the balcony landing on the stony floor, "not good enough, not nearly good enough. I want that usurper Orys dead, he took Tyron's wife his inheritance and even his child's birthright."

"Orys is not to blame for Tyron's death." Dalton reasoned.

"I DON'T CARE!" He roared. "I WANT BLOOD!"

"You will get it brother," Dalton promised but not is not the time for anger, remember we have task at hand and vengeance shall be yours.

Ciron glared, "I'd better," he replied before storming off.

Dalton sighed, "I hope my sisters have better luck than I."

As his sisters went to comfort Ciron, Dalton left to talk to Torrhen. Along the way he heard that a fleet of ships was approaching. Malgus had come again.

After docking Malgus disembarked and clasped hands with his elder brother when he arrived to greet him, he had a grin on his face. Dalton chuckled, "welcome to the camp brother I take it that you enjoyed yourself."

Malgus laughed loudly, "those valyrian underlings offered me no challenge at all. Honestly who taught them how to fight? If I had not fought poor fellows before I would have felt sorry for them."

Dalton smiled, "so how did it go?"

Malgus retold the tale of how he was able to take the Targaryen fleet. "Honestly someone should teach those men how to set up a proper watch. I could have marched in there blowing a trumpet."

"How many ships did you get?"

"Around 40, the fighting got intense so some were destroyed."

Dalton nodded "good, now the Targaryens will be stalled until they find another way to cross the Blackwater." It was nighttime, when Dalton met with the Stark King. Torrhen was on the shores of the Gods Eye with a thousand mile stare.

"Are you scared?" Torrhen nodded and Dalton exhaled, "Good."

Torrhen turned to him, "how is that good?"

Dalton smiled, "it means your not a fool."

Torrhen's eyes narrowed, "You are not frightened, does that mean you are a fool."

Dakton smirked, "No, most likely just out of my mind." This caused both of them to chuckle softly.

Torrhen shook his head, "it's so quiet."

Dalton nodded, "it's always calm before the storm."

Torrhen scratched his head, "Why here Dalton, why not at any of out strongholds?"

Dalton was silent and simply pointed to the island in the dead center of the great lake and Torrhen finally understood.

The Isle of Faces was easily the most sacred place in Troyad it had no temples or statues but it served a much greater purpose. Once the place where the ancients and the humanity made peace soon became a sanctuary. Not only did it have weirwood trees but was also a home for rare animals Aurochs, Little Valyrians, Phantom Tortoises, White ravens, dwarf elephants unicorns and even Old Men of the River. The Blackreynes of old had brought a couple of these massive tortoises to westeros to honor their Rhoynish citizens and give them a piece of home.

To protect the island itself the Children raised a great wall of natural rock at completely surrounded the island. The steep incline and the sharp jagged rocks made scaling it impossible. The only way in was through a huge tunnel big enough for a giant turtle to pass through. Defending the island were children who would act as the guardians and men that dedicated themselves to the gods this small army wielded weirwood bows, tall spears, obsidian daggers with bone hilts, turtle shell shields, forest armour and silver scaled armour. This order which included Water Wizards, Wood Dancers and giants was called the Sacred Band. And if that didn't stop them than the thestrals living there certainly will. Thestrals are unusually intelligent and do not eat the creatures living in the God's Eye

"Aegon's army is composed mostly of Andals," Dalton explained, he even forsakes his own gods to gain the support of the Faith Militant."

Torrhen laughed, "fanatics with sharpened sticks. You'll make meat out of them as your ancestors always have."

Dalton chuckled, "yes, poor little fellows indeed. Tha faith holds the Targaryens in their hand if the get what they want they can use the Targaryens dragons to destroy The Isle of Faces. Peace was made there a santuary was made there and I will not allow it to be destroyed."

Torrhen nodded, the Isle of Faces and High heart were the last places in the south where weirwoods grew freely as well as the last bastions for the Children. The same thing had been done for High Heart, after Jerricoe Blackreyne slew the Andal King Erreg Kinslayer, High Heart Hill was raised into a mesa too high for attackers to reach the weirwood groves at the top.

"Besides my new sword hungers, I should bleed it soon." He drew the sword with it's gleaming black blade and horse carved pommel.

"What happened to Fury?" Torrhen asked.

After I got this one I gave Fury to Lord Ronald," He explained, "Ronald decided to rename it Red Rain because of the blade itself. "He raised his new ont into the air. "Behold, Twilight forged from a blazing meteor sent by Bellicore himself."

Torrhen smiled, "you really think the Titans gifted that to you?"

Dalton nodded, "of that I am certain. As sharp and strong as Valyrian steel, perfectly balanced and just as light."

"Like House Dayne's Dawn," Torrhen realized.

"Precisely, except my blade is black and his is white, hence the name Twilight."

Torrhen turned fully towards him, "Tell me true, Dalton. You truly believe we can win?"

"No," Dalton replied causing Torrhen to falter before he continued. "I know we will win."

"You say these things, but what makes you so certain?"

Dalton placed a hand on Torrhen's shoulder. "Because Master Torrhen, you should never underestimate a Blackreyne."

 _Note, House Blackreyne is based on elements from Sparta, Rome, Vikings, Mongols and Zulu. House Whitehall is based on Bretonnia from Warhammer, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Athens and Reavers as well. Next Chapter, we will finally have the confrontation. Don't worry it will be up shortly_


	14. Showdown

_Finally after months of editing it's finally here apologies for the wait hopefully this will make up for it. Merry New Year and enjoy._

Showdown

Aegon's massive army marched along the eastern shores of the Gods Eye. Aegon intended to march his army to the northern bank where a strip of high ground known as Jerricoe Ridge was. Jerricoe Ridge rose to only 20 feet above the surrounding terrain starting at the northernmost point of the Gods Eye stretching 2 miles before turning westward in a fishhook bend. This earned it the nickname the fishhook. Unfortunately the Blackreynes had already taken it and had erected a wooden palisade reinforced by hay spools to act as a barrier.

By now Aegon's own host had swelled to over 232,000 men. Along with his core 3,000 men, Aegon had 40,000 from the Westerlands, 30,000 from the Vale, 10,000 from the Stormlands, and 70,000 from the Reach. They were further backed by the Faith Militant with 77,700 men They also brought a band of 77 Septons and Septas to pray for a glorious victory. The houses from Troyad were only able to give him 1,300 men. Of this host 52,000 were armoured knights on horse, another 50,000 were armoured knights on foot, 120,000 men at arms in chainmail, and 10,000 archers.

Rhaenys returned shortly with the scouts to Aegon's command tent which was located on a nearby hill.

"What news?" Aegon asked.

"Dalton Blackreyne's host numbers 140,000 strong," she replied. "About 80,000 Blackreynes, 40,000 Starks and 20,000 allies. Of this number 24,000 were mounted, with 10,000 being Arnorian Rangers. About 50,000 archers with four in five being a Blackreyne. The rest was 46,000 men at arms." Rhaenys frowned, "oddly enough the Arnorian rangers use Zorses instead of Coursers."

Lord Lannister nodded, "aye it's been that way for a century now. I guess the Blackreynes were intrigued by their ferocity and hardiness."

Sharra Arryn was worried, "Odd House Blackreyne can field 140,000 men not counting the elite. It seems odd that they would only bring half their standing army to fight."

"Which is why we should be extra careful," Loren insisted.

"Doesn't seem so bad," Visenya shrugged.

Rhaenys smiled, "well I know you'll like this next part, the remaining 10,000 are oddly garbed and more than half seemed to be made up of women."

"The Valkeran's and the Stranger's Sons," Aegon realized, "the Blackreynes elite."

Lord Celtigar and Velaryon looked at each other smiling and Sharra Arryn laughed, "I wouldn't be smiling too long boys, the Valkerans are more vicious than the Stranger's Sons. They also have a habit of taking the bones of a middle finger from each of their victims."

Aegon frowned, it was the two largest hosts ever assembled since Prince Garin's campaign in the Second Spice war. As Aegon's army camped at the foot of the hill, the Blackreynes unseen from the top of the hill started banging their spears on their shields, in a rhythmic pattern. To Aegons forces it sounded like rolling thunder and caused anxiety to the men especially his core force who were unffamiliar with it.

"The Blackreynes control the High Ground, we need to find a way to bring them down to us." Aegon explained.

Sharra Arryn scoffed, "good luck the Blackreynes know of this advantage and they will not give it up. Unlike some people," she glared at Loren Lannister who returned the glare but remained silent. "Make no mistake they will not leave that ridge unless they have absolutely no chioce."

Aegon sighed, "than it will be an uphill battle."

Loren nodded, "we can take care of the palisade using grappling claws" He frowned after that though I just don't know."

Just then two knights arrived escorting a woman Aegon recognized as Daala Blackreyne. "My king this woman claims an emissary from the Blackreynes." Aegon nodded and bid her to approach."

Daala bowed her read respectfully and spoke, "King Aegon, my brother requests a final parley with you before the battle begins

Crispian Celtigar scoffed, "what right does a woman have to speak for men?"

Daala smiled at him, "because only arnorian women give birth to real men Lord Celtigar."

Aegon rubbed his chin, he knew full well that Dalton Blackreyne had no intention on surrendering. Nonetheless he need to see for himself what kind of man Dalton was, to talk to him man to man, one king to another. "tell your brother I will meet with him at dawn."

Daala nodded, "as you wish," turned and left the encampment. Aegon slept fitfully that night knowing the carnage tomorrow would bring.

At dawn Aegon rode with 12 companions to meet with the Blackreynes and their allies at the shores of the God's Eye. With him were his sister wives Rhaenys and Visenya all three rode their dragons. Below him rode his sworn lords. Hand of the King Orys Baratheon, Loren Lannister, Harlen Tyrell, Sharra Arryn, and the High Septon. There was also his council. Master of Ships Daemon Velaryon, Master Of Coin Crispian Celtigar, Master of Laws Triston Massey, Master of Whispers Janos Bar Emmon.

The Blackreynes approached with their own group, ten figures on horseback including two bearers with the sigils of Houses Stark and Blackreyne. An eleventh figure larger than the rest rode a bull. Two at the head of the column Aegon guessed were the two opposing monarchs.

Once they reached a certain distance from each other the two groups dismounted and approached each other with the banner-bearers staying behind. Aegon landed with his sisters before the Blackreynes and their allies.

Aegon noted the his opponents, Two of them were clearly from the north due to their garb and one wore a crown. A bronze circle tipped with iron swordlike spikes.

The others had to be the Blackreynes. Aegon saw who must have been King Dalton for he stood next to King Torrhen. Aegon recognised Daala and noted that the Blackreynes had four other women with them. Dalton towered over most in his group save for one, the man who rode the bull. Aegon had heard of Malgus Blackreyne but actually seeing him made those tales look pale. All of whom were armed, armoured and ready for a fight.

They stopped as soon as they came face to face. Aegon was surprised by Dalton's appearance. He had expected someone rough looking. The High Septon made him out to be a demon in human skin. But Dalton was none of those things, he was indeed the youngest of the monarchs and by far the most comely. Clean shaven with high cheek bones, hair like obsidian and piercing silver eyes. He looked every inch regal as tall and powerful as Aegon himself. Rhaenys was eyeing the handsome youth with great interest Aegon suspected that she might be considering Dalton's offer. On his head instead of the typical crown made of gems and some precious metals, Dalton's crown was made of black iron with eight long spikes and smaller shark-tooth like spikes between them.

Dalton and Aegon stared at each other sizing each other up until finally Dalton broke the silence. "King Aegon," his voice was calm and smooth as glass.

Aegon returned the gesture, "King Dalton."

Dalton looked around, "it's a good day for the crows."

"You are a bold man to face me King Dalton," Aegon replied.

"You have come to Troyad armed and uninvited Aegon, take your host and ease on down the road."

"We have come to far and bled to much to turn back now Arnorian," Orys replied.

"It's is the only thing you can do at this point Lord Baratheon."

Aegon decided to skip the formalities, "these are my terms Dalton. Yield to me and you shall keep dominion over your lands. Remember well the fates of Durrendon and Gardener, yield now and you and your family shall escape that fate!"

Dalton frowned, "yield?" He rubbed his chin pretending to think, "well that is a bit of a problem," he said with a smile. "See word has it the Dornish, have already declined your gracious offer." Aegon frowned and even Rhaenys lost her smile at being reminded of her failure. Dalton continued. "So if those sex crazed desert dwellers can find that kind of nerve? Well, you must understand that we Blackreynes have our own reputation to consider."

"Careful King Blackreyne," Aegon warned, he didn't like to be reminded of his failure to gain Dorne but hopefully that would soon change.

"Oh no need to feel raw about it," Dalton waved it off. "Dorne is not like the others they tend to be made of sterner stuff and that's not just because of their infamous sun." He rubbed his chin again. "I noticed that you sent your sisters to treat with the two sole female rulers in Westeros so well done. However if I were you I would have sent Rhaenys to the Vale and Visenya to Dorne."

"What difference would that make?" Aegon wondered.

"In the Vale likely not much though maybe even friendlier confrontation with the boy king," Dalton admitted. "But in Dorne." Dalton's grinned, "I would have given anything to see how that conversation would have played out."

"Do you think Visenya would have had better luck in securing Dorne?"

"Perhaps, and perhaps not, what I do know is that in another life they would have become good friends. But that's another story, what matters is what your intentions are now?"

"The seven kingdoms has brought nothing but chaos to Westeros." Aegon declared. "Under a single ruler the petty wars shall end."

One of Daltons brother's laughed harshly. "If you think it will stop the troubles Westeros has than you're a fool. From what I've seen the only difference between you and these petty kings is that you have dragons to answer any complaints." He stepped forward and removed his helm and Orys and Aegon gasped at the mirror image of one they had met a few months ago.

Orys was the first to speak pointing at Ciron, "Y-You're dead, the Storm's End traitors killed you." He had known twins yet in all of them there had been something that distinguished them from each other. But this man, he remembered Tyron's face. How could he forget the face of the Man his wife still held to her heart. It was a mirror image no difference at all.

Ciron's eyes flashed with rage as he shook his head, "no you killed my twin, and I swear if you touch Argella, your own brother will be picking your remains from every crack in-"

Dalton raised his hand, and Ciron silenced immediately before backing off growling under his breath. "Forgive him the death of one's twin can be quite traumatizing."

Aegon nodded, he had heard of such bonds shared by twins and he didn't know how he would react if anything happened to Rhaenys or Visenya. He gestured to his host. "Look around Blackreyne. I have brought the full might of westeros to your kingdom, all had been kings once and now they serve me."

Dalton smirked, "I hope you're better with a sword than with a fantasy, You have brought only half of Westeros' armies and rule only a third of it's land behind the wall."

"That will soon change," Aegon said confidently. The Houses of Lannister and Arryn bent the knee, and their submission has been rewarded. The houses Durrendon and Gardener ignored this offer and now they are extinct."

Dalton laughed harshly, "what did these lords bend the knee but for the promise of mercy?"

"That was the agreement, we all made," Aegon protested.

"AN AGREEMENT," Dalton hissed. "What choice did they have but to barter their freedom in the face of extinction, to ransom their crowns in exchange for their lives. Tell me King Aegon, how is that fair?" He shook his head in disgust, "Though I guess I shouldn't be surprised by a people who bullied their way into power instead of earning it. You were even willing to forsake the gods of your own people to gain a mass of talking monkey's the Faith call an army."

"It almost seems like you hate us," Rhaenys observed, "yet we never wronged you."

"Make no mistake, I have nothing personal against you," Dalton assured her. "But the past of your people is indeed something to be frowned upon." The Targaryens looked at each other, what could they have done that was so wrong.

"When Valyria brought down the Ghiscari Empire, we rejoiced. We believed that with the ghiscari gone you would lead Essos into a new era of peace and prosperity. Instead you chose to take up the barbaric mantle of the very people you conquered." Aegon frowned, Dalton had him there yet the Blackreyne King continued.

"What was even less forgiving was your treatment of the The Rhoynar." He growled. "The people of the Rhoyne welcomed yours with open arms. They offered you friendship, and in return your people offered them fire and chains."

Aegon bowed his head, "that was a different time, Dalton," he reasoned. "Things have changed."

Dalton was unconvinced. "Tell me Aegon would things really have changed if the Doom had not happened."

Aegon glared at him yet a part of him could not help but think that Dalton was right. Perhaps this man was not as arrogant as he thought he was. "You Blackreynes take pride in your sense of logic, now I urge you to apply it. Bend the need to me and we can avoid unnecessary bloodshed. Thousands do not need to die needlessly."

Dalton smiled, "you are right Aegon I too do not wish to see another massacre, my offer of a marriage pact still stands . But since you don't seem to happy about that I'll instead offer you this. Let us settle this in the old matter, your champion against our champion. If your champion wins, we shall bend the knee to you. But If our champion prevails then you leave Troyad for good."

Aegon shook his head, "everyone I talk to say you're the deadliest swordsman in Westeros, I will not stake the fate of my Kingdoms on the life of a single man."

"Then it seems we are at an impasse," Dalton said simply. It was as if he expected as much since he showed little sign of disappointment.

Aegon's eyes narrowed, "Isn't it?" Behind him Balerion Meraxes and Vhagar advanced. just behind their riders and drawing themselves to their full height ad spreading their wings to their farthest extent. The Starks backed away but the Blackreynes stood their ground. Aegon was surprised at Blackreyne's lack of response, normally people cowed in fear just at the sight of a dragon. The Blackreynes just seemed bored, like they were looking at a dog.

Aegon smirked, behind him all three dragons roared and breathed a stream of fire into the sky heating the air around them. He looked at Dalton, "if you do not yield Lord Blackreyne this shall be your fate."

The High Septon smiled confidently, "Your pagan reign has come to an end. The gods have granted us dragons to ensure it's end is permanent."

Balerion stepped forward towards Dalton's group. his siblings backed off, but Dalton remained where he was even as Balerion came eye to eye with the Blackreyne king and roared in his face.

Dalton looked more annoyed than scared as he waved his hand in front of his nose as a response to getting a full blast of the Dragon's breath. Dalton turned to Aegon and frowned, "you feed him too much fish."

Aegon was starting to get aggravated, "you are either the bravest or the most foolish man I've ever met."

"Perhaps I am both," Dalton replied, "and perhaps I am neither of those things. But if you expect me to look upon your beasts and cower like a white rabbit, then prepare to be disappointed. You see Aegon I'm not a vain man. I defy you not because I want to keep my crown or that I fear looking weak. But because you have not proven at all that you will be a good ruler. All you have done so far is use your dragons to scare everyone into submission and roasting those who refuse to accept you. If you can't do anything without your dragons what kind of ruler does that make you. The rest of us actually have experience ruling. You will find that ruling westeros is different from ruling three islands in the Narrow Sea. If I bend the knee to you I want to be certain that I am do so for a man who will be a good ruler because if I bend to a tyrant than it would have been a wasteful gesture."

Aegon opened his mouth to speak but Rhaenys beat him to it. "Dalton I admit there is some merit to your words. He may not have the experience of being king. But I promise you, my brother is a good man and he will make a good King if you gave him the chance."

Dalton looked other sadly. "I do not doubt that your brother is a good man and even I admit that his intentions are pure. But one thing that has always been evident in history. All power corrupts and it makes no distinction. Power must be handled carefully because if it isn't you will quickly see yourself become the Tyrant."

Dalton's words shocked the Targaryens, and Aegon finally understood Dalton's stubborn defiance. Truth be told he had not considered how being king could change him. But he dismissed it. "Power may corrupt lesser men, Andals, First Men, Rhoynar, Ghiscari, Arnorians. But we are Valyrians it shall not corrupt me."

"You are still just human Aegon Targaryen regardless of how pure your blood is," Dalton countered.

"Listen to reason," Rhaenys pleaded. "You may be able to defeat my brother's armies but you have nothing that can defeat a dragon."

Silence followed as Dalton looked at the ground, "nothing that can defeat a dragon," he repeated in a whisper. Dalton was silent and for a moment it seemed as though he was going to accept. Then he looked up at Aegon and began to chuckle softly. "My dear valyrian friend I have to disagree with you on that."

Aegon and his sisters stared at him absolutely confused, Dalton was laughing as he back of towards his steed. "You wanted a war Aegon Targaryen, then you shall get it. You've done well, thus far but only because you had an unnatural advantage over all your adversaries. Now, let's see how well you do when the odds are a little more...equal."

Aegon's eyes narrowed, "so be it Dalton Blackreyne. When the sun sets your line will end."

Dalton smiled wryly at him and said in fluent Valyrian, "Not Today Aegon Targaryen." This took the Targaryens by surprise as Dalton and his companions rode back behind their lines.

As the two parties, returned back to their hosts, Rhaenys looked back at Dalton with a sad expression. Aegon on his dragon and Dalton on his Stallion raised their swords and gave rallying speeches to their armies.

Aegon: "Men of Westeros, you hear my dragons now hear my words. Before us is the final battle. Today is the End of House Blackreyne, We will bring down the Houses of Stark and Blackreyne and smash their precious host. The North and Troyad will burn until the surface is but glass. I shall teach the Blackreynes the meaning of FIRE AND BLOOD AND ALL SHALL REMEMBER THIS AS THE LAST DAY OF TROYAD!"

Dalton: "Down there, a great host is on the warpath, waiting, hoping, praying to destroy us. The Targaryens think that their dragons make them invincible. That they can take what they wish and do as they please, and nothing will stop them. But on this day my brothers and sisters, THAT...ALL...ENDS. TODAY WE SHALL END THE MYTH OF THE DRAGON'S INVINSIBLILITY. I bid you my brothers and sisters to fight, not just for the independence that is ours by right. But for our people, our homes, for the North and Troyad. THIS IS OUR COUNTRY!"

Despite the Blackreynes holding the high ground a plan was devised. The men at arms would tear down the palisade and engage Dalton's men up the hill. As the Blackreynes and Starks are busy engaging them. Aegon's heavy Horse would flank around and strike the vulnerable spot in Jerricoe Ridge. The southwest area just south of the fishhook's tip. They would come around and strike the archers who would be behind the men at arms. Once they were boxed in then Aegon's dragons would swoop in and turn Jerricoe Ridge into the ridge of fire.

Knowing the risk of riding their dragons, Aegon and chose to lead the front while Visenya held the rear in case of a flanking manuever. Rhaenys over saw the battle from a nearby hill, beside her was the High Septon and Sharra Arryn.

At Aegon's signal the Men at Arms advanced the first line in their ranks was made up of men carrying tower shields protecting the rest of the ranks from archer fire. The Blackreynes moved first unleashing a hail of flaming arrows which landed on the ground at the foot of the ridge. Dalton gave his own signal and men pulled on a series of ropes. The ropes released the spools of hay and send them rolling down the hill. The spools picked up momentum as they rolled down the ridge, the moment they made contact with the flaming arrows they burst into flames . The spools of hay became spools of flame as then rolled straight at Aegon's front line. Upon seeing this the men in Aegon's ranks started to panic and now fought to get out of the path of the spools.

The men carrying the tall shields happen to be poor fellows, for Aegon soon learned that what they lacked in skill and well anything really they made up for in devotion. They did not flee and stood their ground and stuck their shields into the ground against the incoming wave of fire. The spools, bowled over the first line of shieldmen and the second but the third and last line held though many were burned in the process.

With their lines in disarray, Dalton orders the archers to rain hell down upon them. the volley created by 50,000 bows formed a dark cloud in the sky blocking the sun for a brief moment before descending back down to earth. Men at arms fell by the scores, their chainmail and boiled leather provided little protection against the bodkin points of the Blackreyne arrows. As for the Poor Fellows, they certainly earned their name.

Aegon was able to quickly reformed his men as he pressed the army forward. Braving the deadly volley of arrows, they reached the Blackreyne lines and now engaged Dalton's men in fierce close quarters fighting.

Aegon's eyes darkened, "so the Blackreyne likes to play with fire, we'll see how much he likes valyrian fire. He pulled out a horn and blew it giving the signal for his dragons to attack. The three beasts took to the skies and headed straight for the Blackreyne Host

Dalton calmly looked as the three dragons descended upon his host Torrhen was looked between him and the dragons wondering how Dalton intended top handle this. Calmly Dalton then pulled something from his jerkin. But what he pulled out was not a weapon but a flute, Torrhen could tell it was made of dragonbone as he looked at his companion curiously. Dalton smiled, licked his lips and blew a short sinister tune.

The Targaryens watched as the Dragons opened their maws ready to rain their deadly breath upon Daltons host. A flicker barely escaped their mouth when out of nowhere, three blue bolts shot from the sky striking each dragon in the head resulting in an explosion and a huge smoke screen. The strikes caused the dragons to break off their attack as they turned away from the smoke.

When the smoke cleared three creatures came into full view facing the stunned dragons. Everyone save the Blackreynes stared in disbelief at the sight before them. The creatures looked like horses, but they were huge. Each of them dwarfed a draft horse standing no less than 22 hands in height and weighing 3,200 pounds. But their size was the least interesting thing about them. Their snouts came to points and their maws full of serrated teeth. Instead of hooves, their legs, ended in 5 digits, three claws forward and two claws back. Their eyes were golden the tail was lizardlike and a ridge of backswept spikes lined their necks. Despite all this the feature that had everyone staring in was the pair of dragon likewings that protruded from their shoulders. The horse like creatures roared at the dragons flicking their forked tongues at their adversaries, it sounded like a cross between that of a dragon and the neighing of a horse.

Atop the hill Rhaenys was in complete in disbelief at this turn of events, She had read stories, accounts and myths about winged horses. But those only told of ones with wings like a bird, never a dragon and he never knew a creature like this could possibly exist. She cupped her hand over her mouth 'how could we be so blind?' She thought, the signs were there, Dalton's words, "I have dealt with it's kind before," to his declaration about making the odds more equal. Then there were his dreams, that alone should have been enough to reconsider his campaign. But no he dismissed the very visions that had saved his family from the Doom. The Blackreynes had been ready for them and they had fallen into their trap. Beside her the High Septon was saying a prayer in a rapid mumble.

"Beautiful aren't they?" A voice said, Rhaenys, Sharra and the High Septon turned to see Veiga, Cora and Tara riding up the hill to join them

The first one to get over his shock was Aegon who voice the question on everyone's mind. "What in the name of all the gods it that thing?" He asked in horror and awe.

Veiga turned to the Targaryens with a light hearted smile. "We call them Thestrals," she explained, "children of a wyvern and a horse. A little something we bred many thousands or years ago"

"AN ABOMINATION," the High Septon shrieked. "Servants of the seven hells, an affront to the seven and all that is sacred in this world!"

Veiga turned to Rhaenys who was finally getting over the shock and stared at them, her lilac eyes gleaming. She grinned broadly, truly, Rhaenys did you really take us for the rest of those imbecilic monarchs. Did you honestly think our brother would be foolish enough to challenge yours without something to even out the field?"

One of the Thestrals, likely the leader flew forward in front of the other two and hissed at Balerion. "That one is Matthra," Veiga explained, "Dalton's thestral." Balerion sensed the challenge and accepted, he roared in an attempt to frighten his challenger. The Black Dread caused the ground to rattle but Matthra didn't seem intimidated and snarled in defiance

Balerion reared his head up like a snake ready to strike and unleashed it's deadly black fire. The flames engulfed Matthra bathing him entirely. The Sharra and the High Septon smiled believing that this was the end of the creature. After a few moments Balerion stopped breathing fire. As the flames receded and the smoke cleared their smiles died instantly. Matthra was still very much alive and completely unharmed. It's body let off steam from the heat of Balerion's flame, his eyes glowed red as it gave a slow shake of his head.

Balerion was taken aback when his flames failed to kill the creature before him so he opened his mouth and lunged his head forward intending to swallow it whole. A blue flash ran up Matthra's ridge spines as a lightning bolt erupted from his mouth straight at Balerion's gaping maw. The impact caused an explosion and a brief wave of lightning coursed through Balerion's head. The explosion caused Balerion to roar in agony, as the dragon tried to shake off the lightning. Seeing their brother get injured Meraxes and Vhagar charged at Matthra only to be blocked by the other two thestrals. The six wings creatures were now battled in the clouds. The sky was set ablaze as fire and lightning danced across the heavens. Taking advantage of their foe's distracted state, Malgus pressed his men to attack. Caught off guard, Aegon's men quickly tried to form up against the counterattack and the battle on the ground was raging once again

As Aegon engaged the Blackreynes on the ridge, Aegon's heavy horse led by his brother Orys, was able to get around to behind the Blackreyne positions. But as they made their way south, they are met by Daltons own cavalry led by CIron. Ciron had their cavalry form a trident formation, the Starks, Reynes and Royces formed the center prong that would spearhead down the center cutting Aegons cavalry in half, the Arnorian Rangers would make up the flanking prongs that would ride off to either side and hit Aegon's horses in the flanks. The center line crashed with Aegon's with enormous impact, men on both sides were unhorsed. Those still alive continued to fight on foot, chaos had ensued in the center and Aegons heavy horse was decimating the Stark cavalry. As the bloodbath mounted in the center the Arnorian Rangers loosed their arrows on the Targaryen flanks, knights dropped like flies to the skill of the Rangers. Despite this early success, Aegon's superior numbers and equipment was taking it's toll and soon Ciron ordered the men to fall back to the ridge. Lord Orys was able to cut off small pockets of Rangers and swiftly cut them down. Believing their cavalry to be broken, Orys pressed his advance.

He chased them further back when he started to feel something was wrong. Even retreating the Arnorian Rangers continued to loosed arrows behind them picking off more of Orys' men. Then Ciron and Daala sprung their trap, Ciron wheeled his horse around and his men followed his lead now they were facing the charging Targaryen cavalry. Daala then led the 6,000 Valkerans and the 4,000 Stranger's Sons from the tip of Jerricoe ridge. Once Orys's horse rode halfway past she went charging after them. Ciron reformed his men and made a final charge against the Targaryen cavalry this time with the horse archers in the front pouring their arrows into Orys' front lines crippling it and distracting them from Daala's valkerans. Just as the two were going to collide again the Valkeran's slammed into Orys' flanks bringing their charge to a standstill. as Ciron's men smashed into Orys Shattered front. the pincer had been closed and what was once a battle on horseback transformed into a frenzy on the ground as many of the unhorsed men were now at the mercy of longsword wielding women and the Rangers which now rode in a great circle around the fighting picking off the knights that came into view.

Compared to their male counterparts the Stranger's Sons, Valkerans were their equal in courage, second in skill and unmatched in ferocity. Their abilities with a longsword far outclassed the proud knights of the Andals. Valkerans had taken to making a game of slaying andal knights to see who can slay the most, but the most valuable prey were the Warrior's Sons. The Valkerans seemed to dance through the battlefield driving their swords through the chinks in the knights armour, the neck, the armpit the joints. Daala slew many of the Warrior's Sons before slaying their leader.

The Stranger's Sons with their dual bladed sword staffs cut down more knight while suffering minor casualties. and finishing off anyone unfortunate to be wounded. In the chaos, Orys found himself facing a still angry Ciron Blackreyne wielding a simple swordstaff. Orys barely had time to prepare as Ciron charged.

'So this is a Blackreyne,' Orys though as they dueled. "Now I see why everyone was so worried about. This was nothing like fighting Argilac, the Durrendon King was still deadly despite his age. It was one of the hardest fights of his life. But Ciron made that fight look like child's play and Orys had no advantages in this time. Not only was he younger, Ciron was tougher, stronger, faster, and a lot angrier. Ciron moved like a blurr his moves seemed almost inhuman. It took everything he had just to keep up, it didn't help that Ciron had the reach. Orys was constantly on the defensive as he continued to parry Ciron's relentless assault.

"I didn't kill Tyron," Orys was saying. "his death is not my fault."

If he had hoped to reason with him he was wrong as his eyes burned. "NOT YOUR FAULT?!" He struck Orys' sword hard the vibrations crawled up Orys' arm. "Who killed our good-father? (clang) "Who frightened Argella's own guards into betraying her?" (clang) "Who scared them into killing Tyron?" (clang) "WHO TOOK EVERYTHING FROM HIM?!" (CLANG). A final blow broke Orys' sword and he stumbled back. He crawled around looking for a fresh sword until he saw one under Cirons foot. Ciron noticed this and in a shocking move he kicked the sword to Orys who picked it up and struggled to his feet.

"YOU took Tyron's wife, you took Storm's End which was his by right." Ciron snarled.

"Argella married me willingly," Orys tried to explain, "I never forced her."

"What choice did she have?" Ciron countered. "But to either marry you or loose her home to a foreign ruler entirely." The two locked blades as Orys glared at the angry man and he saw him grin."The only consolation I can see is that you have bound yourself to a loveless marriage. Argella will never love you EVER!"

That struck a nerve in Orys as Ciron moved and grabbed Orys by the arm. Orys tried to slash him with his sword but Ciron grabbed that arm too, as he brought Orys' arms behind his back and with a single lurch dislodged them both. Ciron dropped Orys and smirked. "Not so tough without your brother are you?" With that done he turned to join his sister.

By the end of the skirmish Ciron had lost half of his cavalry 14,000 men including 4,000 Rangers. But they had manage to inflict 37,000 casualties on the Aegons horse including all the Warriors Sons. The rest surrendered upon seeing Orys' defeated.

While the cavalry skirmish waned, the battle at the top of Jerricoe Ridge raged ever fiercer. At the 'head' of the ridge Malgus Blackreyne had found himself in and middle of a crowd of Poor Fellows taking them down in scores with his pickaxe. So Far Aegon's men had failed to make Dalton's budge from their position.

Aegon fought in a fury as he dispatched one opponent after another. Nothing could stop Aegon as he cut through armor and flesh with his Valyrian steel blade Blackfyre. Blackreyne warriors proved to not be easy prey aand at one point one was able to knock his helmet off. Many were able to hold their own with some of them attacking him in coordinated groups of 2, 3, and sometimes 4. But eventually Aegons own skill won out as one by one they fell to his blade. The hand-and-a-half sword granting the dragon rider a greater advantage then the others. As with a simple flick of his blade he could remove a man's arm, with a simple overhead slash he could cut a man in two, Valyrian Steel is unrivaled in durability and sharpness. Still Dalton's men did not cower and faced him despite being outmatched.

Yet he quickly found himself overwhelmed through sheer numbers as Aegon was forced to watch for attacks from all angles. Luckily a life time of dragon riding only assisted Aegon in this endeavor as a dragon rider must often look at his surroundings in order to find prey or even an enemy. Aegon had become a master of this task as he cut through would had to be a dozen warriors before Loren Lannister shouted "Your Grace" and pointed to Aegon's left.

Immediately turning Aegon recognized a brutal warrior garbed in all black standing in a circle filled with the bodied of dozens of Targaryen knights many of whom were from Aegon's personal guard. Aegon recognized him as Dalton Blackreyne simply by the all black armor that he wore and his black blade. Unlike Aegon's simple scaled armor and leather Dalton wore a full set of black plate armor that protected all parts of his body in some form yet it did little to hamper the legendary swordsman's fighting ability. Like Aegon Dalton seem to have lost his helm during the battle. A weakness that Dalton turned into an advantage for most men would attempt to strike at Dalton's head. The dragon rider learned this all too quickly as he witnessed Dalton grabbed another one of Aegon's guards who attempted to cleave his head in two from the Blackreyne's blind spot.

Without even bothering to turn fully Dalton cut another knight across the chest who attempted to strike Dalton while he was distracted. His blade effortless cutting through leather and chainmail as though the knight was bare and then he lifted the first knight and tossed him over his head to the ground below.

With Balerion currently trapped in a fight with Matthra Aegon did not have the luxury of his dragon to win the battle. This simple fact infuriated Aegon to no end as the Blackreynes managed to remove Aegon's greatest advantage in the battle, his dragons.

Needless to say Aegon knew he needed to remove Dalton from battle if only to break the Blackreyne army. Thus Aegon charged, intent to show Dalton Blackreyne the taste of Valyrian steel as Dalton smiled and quickly leaned forward with sword in hand to deliver a wide overhead strike. The blow was powerful with both hands on the grip of his blade and Aegon expected this as he brought his own blade to intercept Dalton's blade. Valyerian steel could cut through anything, everyone knew this as Aegon's arms shook when Dalton's blade struck Blackfyre. Yet it did not break, it did not chip nor did not stop beneath the might of Blackfyre as Aegon looked at his foe's blade more closely.

The blade was dark as the night yet shined like a diamond, reminding Aegon of the stories he heard as a boy of House Dayne's own blade Dawn. It was not Valyrian Steel but rather forged from a meteorite that fell upon Starfall long before written history. Yet the blade was just as sharp and just as durable as Valyrian Steel as Aegon realized that his foe was wielding a blade equal to that of Blackfyre.

This momentary lapse in concentration was all that Dalton needed to bend his knees and push forward, sending Aegon backwards."What's the matter dragon rider spent too many years away from solid ground?" Dalton taunted him in a tone that made it seem that he was speaking to a child rather than a fully grown man. Yet Aegon could not fault Dalton's insult, in his childhood Aegon had spent countless hours in the training yard of Dragonstone learning everything there is to know about being a warrior. When he was bonded with Balerion however Aegon spent most of his time learning how to fight on top of his dragon rather than on the ground with the rest of his men.

The two men clashed in a flurry of steel, their blades becoming blurs from the speed of their movements. Aegon broke contact with his foe for only a moment to set his own foot back on solid ground before he could take a tumble. Dalton in turn advanced upon Aegon quickly and sent a powerful kick into the dragon rider's chest Aegon barely had a chance to recover as Blackfyre went flying out of Aegon's hand from the blow.

Dalton merely followed his foe in a slower pace as Aegon stumbled back. Smiling Dalton advanced, Twilight gripped tightly in his hands as he smashed against Aegon Targaryen with heavy cleaves. Striking at Aegon's left shoulder Aegon brought his own blade to meet Dalton's own but once again Dalton showed his superior strength by sending Aegon's arm into a shake from the strike.

Quickly Dalton used the momentum of the blow to position his sword to Aegon's right hip and swung once more with the intention of gutting the dragon rider.

Aegon in turn was forced to leap backwards as Dalton once again used the momentum of his blow to slash Aegon across the chest from left hip to right shoulder. It was just pure luck that kept Aegon from dying as Dalton had chosen a one handed grip for the attack. The one handed grip was best used for speed while a two handed grip was perfect for power blows that would have killed Aegon. In truth however Dalton knew he could have ended the bout at any moment however he had heard of Aegon's legendary skills with a blade and decided to test the would be King. Pity that the man didn't seem to be really into the fight as Dalton pressed his advantage, hammering against Aegon with a barrage of strikes and Aegon in turn was forced to weather the blows.

Aegon held Blackfyre closely to his chest, allowing him to quickly maneuver his blade to block every strike as Dalton continued to attack the dragon rider with a mixture of one and two handed blows. Yet even Aegon knew his foe was holding back, changing the speed and strength of each strike to test how Aegon would react. Dalton wanted a good fight, Aegon knew that sooner or later Dalton would be done with their little duel and dispatch Aegon with ease unless he managed to surprise Dalton. Aegon knew he needed an opening however small, one strike, one perfect strike, and suddenly Dalton would find himself on the defensive.

One moment, one brief moment, that was all he needed as Aegon was forced to defend himself from what felt like a hundred blades. Dalton was a superior swordsman as he did not spend his time riding dragons or on horseback but rather fighting with sword in hand against worthy opponents. On Dragonstone Aegon had the best training offered. He learned techniques from all over the Free Cities, and he could easily best Visenya and Orys.

He began to move away from the blows he could rather than stand his ground, he began to swing his blade with greater strength to meet Dalton's own, and he began to control the angle of his foe's blade.

Dalton smiled at this, Aegon had the training yes but Dalton had something more experience. Aegon began to doubt his odd of defeating him as the famed swordsman began to fight harder. Aegon began to utilize every lesson he learned in matters of the sword.

Once again Blackfyre and Twilight crossed blades and once again their wielders attempted to over power each other. Aegon and Dalton began to add more strength into forcing their foe's blade back until suddenly Aegon slid his blade off of Dalton's own, sending the Blackreyne tumbling forward for a brief moment. That brief moment was all that Aegon needed to slash his foe at the knee and would have likely cut deep had Dalton sensed the attack and pivot to the left.

Still Aegon's strike was enough to cut through Dalton's armored leg and even draw blood but at the sad cost of leaving the dragon rider exposed as Dalton quickly tackled Aegon's chest. Dalton's arms protected by solid plates only served to increase the strength behind the blow as Aegon was sent backwards, the scales of his armor chipping from the force as Aegon attempted to raise Blackfyre to strike Dalton in turn.

Sadly Blackfyre was still pointed low and so the strike was easily avoided to Dalton who halted his advance for a moment to allow the blade to cut nothing but air.

Suddenly Aegon found himself on the defensive again as Dalton attacked with new aggression. He struck Aegon with powerful overhead strikes that sent Aegon's knees into a buckle, he struck Aegon with powerful strikes at Aegon's one and eleven o'clock that sent Aegon reeling as Dalton continued his assault.

Aegon was forced to hold his hands not closely together as before but as far apart as possible in order to give himself maneuverability and speed. Dalton's blows however were still too powerful and every attempt to evade his blows were met with immediate counters as Aegon felt his ribs being struck with each dodge. He felt a quick jab at his left shoulder that pierced his armor in a similar manner to that of a Braavosi Water Dancer. Only instead of merely a glancing blow Dalton continued to move forward to increase the piercing power of his blade. Aegon in turn batted the blade away and once again exposing himself as Dalton quickly repositioned his blade on Aegon's wounded left side and swung at Aegon's neck.

Knowing his wounded shoulder would not allow him time to intercept the blow Aegon did the next best thing and stood side face, his right side towards Dalton and his blade held tightly across his chest.

Dalton's blow in turn was stopped only now Aegon was smart enough to stand his ground rather than prepare to dodge. Such a choice left Aegon from moving as Dalton was surprised at such a maneuver, a maneuver that left the swordsman distracted long enough for Aegon to tackle Dalton with his right shoulder in the same manner as Dalton did before. Only Aegon did not have armored plates protecting his shoulder, he had scale armor and leather yes but solid plate armor made for a better battering ram as Aegon discovered .

Dalton only took a step back from such a blow before angrily grabbing the back of Aegon's hair and pulled hard to the point where parts of it were ripped from his scalp.

Screaming in pain Aegon lost his footing as Dalton quickly brought his wounded knee up to strike Aegon's exposed stomach. Dalton's good leg kept him steady throughout the entirely of the blow, keeping him from falling beneath the weight of his armor and body.

Aegon however was not so lucky as his armor cracked beneath the weight of such a blow as Dalton grabbed Aegon by the neck and tossed the dragon rider to the side. Had Aegon worn proper heavy armor or even weighed another stone perhaps such a feat would have been impossible but alas he was a dragon rider. Dragon riders need to be light in order to move properly on top of their dragon and not annoy the dragon's neck as well. As such Aegon becoming a dragon rider had become quite a weakness against a man such as Dalton Blackreyne as Aegon was flung to the ground. Blackfyre fell out of the dragon rider's grasp as Dalton advanced, Aegon still reeling from the blow could not bring himself to rise let alone reach for his blade.

Dalton knew this and wished to prolong Aegon's suffering as he fell to his knees and raised his blade high above his head in a reverse grip.

Smiling Dalton spoke two simple words to the fallen dragon rider as Aegon attempted to move only to discover that Dalton's right knee had fallen on Aegon's chest, pinning him to the ground.

"Not bad" Dalton spoke and raised his blade as high as he could before bringing it down against Aegon Targaryen, the First of His Name.

Aegon however was not yet ready for hell as he reached for his last weapon, a simple dagger he kept sheathed on his belt meant to cut him loose should he ever be tangled in the saddle of Balerion the Black Dread. Drawing the blade quickly Aegon plunged it into Dalton's left ribs, causing the swordsman to fall back slightly as Aegon quickly freed himself and moved towards where Blackfyre fell.

Not even bothering to stand Aegon crawled as he recognized the dragon shaped hilt of his blade and quickly moved towards it as Dalton pulled the dagger from his ribs and tossed it aside, showing little sign of pain of distress.

The wound was not as deep as one might expect simply because it was made for cutting rather than thrusting, a fact that saved Dalton Blackreyne from being severely wounded.

Instead Dalton was merely bleeding and one of his ribs was no doubt cracked but not enough to keep the warrior down as he rose to find Aegon nearing his blade. Dalton advanced, intent on ending their little fight as dragon and thestral fought above them and both of their armies fought all around them. Yet none would come to Aegon's aid as Aegon managed to grasp Blackfyre just as Dalton raised his blade over Aegon's crawling form.

Holding Blackfyre in one hand Aegon quickly rolled to the side, slashing Dalton across the belly on pure accident as the dragon rider quickly rose just in time to parry a powerful side swipe by Dalton.

Not one to be deterred Dalton quickly brought his sword up and brought it down hard like thunder, causing both blades to spark from the force of the blow. Yet Aegon stood his ground, he was no longer a grounded dragon rider but rather a warrior and warriors do not run as Aegon put all of his strength into his arms and pushed forward. He was intent to slash Dalton across the face and Dalton in turn was intent to merely draw blood from his foe. Both opponents attempting to control each other's blade was a remarkable sight unseen by those who use the knight's stance of Westeros.

Neither of these men however were trained in the same vane however as Aegon began to feel his shoulder wound affecting his arm strength. To make matters worse fatigue was beginning to get to him while Dalton seemed as fresh as ever. The momentary lapse was enough for Dalton to notice as he struck Aegon's already wounded shoulder with the tip of his blade with enough force that Aegon could feel his shoulder crack.

His left arm swinging limply from the blow as Dalton quickly slid his blade high until Blackfyre's edge touched the castle forged guard of Twilight. Unlike most swords however Twilight was angled in such a way that Aegon's blade was locked into place and with a simple flick of his wrist Dalton sent Blackfyre free from Aegon's grasp. Yet Dalton was not yet done as he slashed Aegon across his left knee, enough to leave the rider unable to stand properly as Aegon screamed in pain before falling.

Aegon stumbled to the ground and reached again for his sword. Just as he grabbed it a heavy foot pressed down onto his arm. Aegon was flipped to his back and Dalton put his other foot down on dalton's chest. He smirked as he aimed Twilight's blade directly above Aegon's throat. Aegon's eyes stared directly into Dalton's silver ones as he stood over him looking at him sighed deeply realizing he was beaten, and his hands released his sword.

Upon seeing their king beaten the rest of Aegon's host dropped their weapons in surrender. and now their focus turned to the duel in the sky.

As the two kings were dueling, the dragons and the thestrals continued their deadly dance. The war of wings lasted for 12 hours with neither side gaining any true advantage. Streaks of lightning and streams of fire crossed each other in a stunning display of blue and black and orange. The dragons bathed the sky in fire in a vain attempt to burn their opponents.

As the dragons and the Thestrals fought Aegon noted the Blackreyne's beasts. His dragons were larger stronger and heavier, yet surprisingly the thestrals were not much faster. In fact the Thestrals had several close calls barely avoiding dragons gaping jaws by inches. But what the Thestrals lacked in speed they made up for in agility, they could turn twist and dive better than the dragons ever could.

Little did he know that Dalton was unsure how the outcome would be. Normally Thestrals engaged dragons in pairs. never risking a one on one encounter. Though he had more than three thestrals Dalton believed in fair play. "I vowed to fight Aegon on equal terms, and the gods shall decide between us."

While a dragons hide prevented the Thestral's lightning from killing them but it didn't stop it from causing intense agony. To dragons lightning from a thestral was like a hornet sting to a human. Balerion being the largest and strongest was able to withstand the attacks, but Vhagar the youngest of the three was not so immune. The thestrals seemed to notice this so the thestrals started to tag team Vhagar. Mercilessly pounding her with lightning.

It was said that Dragons were as intelligent as humans, thestrals were no different. They worked in unison one distracting a dragon while the other struck it with lightning. With each bolt that hit her Vhargar found herself getting weaker and weaker her movements becoming slower as the agony was causing her to lose consciousness.

Then the unbelievable happened the thestrals charged Vhargar head on and simultaneously struck the dragon in the head. Vhagar let out an agonizing roar before she finally gave in to unconsciousness. Vhagar crashed to the ground causing the earth to shake from the impact. The dragon laid still unconscious.

The two factions stared in disbelief at the fall of the mighty creature. Vhagars fall seem to break the stalemate and many things happened. With one dragon down it seemed that the thestrals would win, but Vhagar's defeat came at a cot to the thestrals. Balerion was able to get the drop on one of the thestrals and his jaws clamped down, the thestral struggled mightily letting loose a torrent of lightning everywhere in an attempt to break free from Balerions grip. But the dragon refused to relent hellbent on avenging his partner, he clamped down, causing bones to crack. the thestral roared with it's dying breath before going limp. Balerion loosened his grip on the thestral and swallowed the creature whole.

The moment this happened Balerion was pounded mercilessly by thunderbolts from the remaining Thestrals who seemed hellbent on avenging their 'brother.' Meraxes quickly swooped in to help and manage to take one thestral by surprise swiping it's claws down it's back before smacking it with her tail breaking one of the thestral's wings and sending it plummeting to the ground.

Two thestrals had been taken out, one dead and the other badly wounded leaving Matthra to face the two remaining dragons alone. Quickly Matthra flew higher and higher into the clouds with Balerion giving chase and Meraxes flying in nother direction in an attempt to cut him off. Balerion chased Matthra through the clouds directing him towards Meraxes. Matthra was only barely able to stay ahead when Meraxes appeared from a cloud directly in front of him. At the last moment Matthra dived down as balerion started to close it's jaws. He ended up colliding with Meraxes his jaws clamping down on her neck. Balerion quickly realised his actions and released Meraxes fron the death grip. The bite left several holes in Meraxes near impregnable hide. Matthra came back up again and let out a stream of lightning. the lightning found it's mark on Meraxes' neck it's charge finding a path through the dragons newly acquired wounds. Meraxes screamed in pain as the lighting coursed inside her and render her unconscious. Meraxes fell to the ground below not far from where Vhagar laid.

Enraged Balerion charged after Matthra who had taken another dive folding his wings in to prevent wind resistance. The ground inched closer and closer as the two beasts continued their descend. Aegon stared at them until he realized what the Thestral was about to do. He knew that dragons fight more effectively with riders to guide their actions. The most likely reason the thestrals were also riderless was they could perform the loops and twists without and not endanger the rider in the process.

It was then that Aegon realized another reason why the thestrals were able to do so well against his dragons. Unlike his ancestors who were in a constant state of infighting dragon fights were an almost daily occurence. Balerion Meraxes and Vhargar had no such experience and all their victims had been landlocked. Aegon remembered Dalton's words and figured out that these thestrals had experience fighting dragons to the point where they were used to hunt the wild ones. "So this is how he slew Balerion's 4 companions," he thought.

Aegon's fear was realized when at the last moment Matthra spread his wings and halted his descend causing Balerion to overtake him. He had been so focused on taking out the creature that injured his mate that he didn't see the ground untill it was too late. Balerion tried to spread it's wings and stop his fall but he was too large, and going to fast to react in time. Balerion crashed head first to the ground with more force than his mates combined. A moment later Balerion staggered on it's limbs in an attempt to get up but after swaying for a few moments he gave up and collapsed to the ground.

Matthra landed next to him and nudged the great dragon. Balerion let out a snort indicating he was still alive and Matthra trotted towards Dalton everyone backed away in terror creating a path. One fanatical Warrior Son charged and tried to drive his sword into Matthra's hind. To everyone's shock the blade broke against his hide not ave scratching him. Matthra turned to the knight and drove his thumb spikes straight through the steel plate, riveted chainmail and leather as if it was silk. The Warrior Son cried out in pain and expected to be struck by lightning. Instead with his helm still on, Matthra bit his head off. he spat out the helm and gobbled the head whole.

The Targaryen's rushed to check on their dragons wounded and exhausted but still alive. Dalton stroked Matthra's head as the creature purred affectionately and licking his face with a blue forked tongue. Dalton mounted Matthra before turning to Aegon who looked at him unsure of how to feel about what had occurred.

"I think we have had enough for today King Aegon." Dalton said simply, as Orys was taken to Aegon slumped over on a horse.

Aegon turned to his dragons then his men and the sight of his half brother was what finally convinced him to turn back to Dalton and nod. As Dalton flew away with his army behind him, Aegon turned to his men and said two simple words. "Fall Back."

 _For anyone wondering about the thestral's roar it's like the Reek from Star Wars Episode 2_


	15. Aftermath

Aftermath

The War of the Wings, as the battle became known as was the bloodiest in the history of Westeros. By the battle's end the Blackreynes lost 30,000 men, while the Targaryens lost 120,000. To make matters worse all three of their dragons had been knocked out of the fight.

Aegon and his army whent limping back to Oldtown where he called a council. He eyed the lords around him and spoke, "does anyone care to explain to me WHAT IN THE GODS' NAME WAS THAT BACK THERE?"

Loren Lannister was the first to speak, "your grace, I swear by all the gods that none of us had any idea the Blackreynes posessed such creatures."

"Or that such creatures even existed," Harlen added.

"Thestrals," Rhaenys corrected, "the Blackreynes called them Thestrals."

Aegon was unconvinced, "they are large horses with wings and spit lightning. How could you not know of their existance?"

"Mainly because, since the time they arrived in westeros they NEVER used them before until now." Sharra Arryn retorted.

"Then why now? Why of all times do they use them against us?" Rhaenys wondered

Visenya rolled her eyes, "why do you think sister? Because we forced their hand. We came into their kingdom with three fire breathing dragons, we left them no choice."

Aegon sighed and turned to lord Tyrell, "you are quiet my lord, have you not any opinion?"

Harlen Tyrell sighed and turned to his fellow lords. "None of you seemed to get it do you. All this time, all this fighting. The Blackreynes could have bowled over our kingdoms easily without breaking a sweat. They had the power to bring us all to heel. But they didn't, they didn't use their thestrals because they knew they didn't need them to beat us. The only reason our kingdom's exist is because they allow it. We mean little to them."

The room was silent from Harlan's speech and they all thought on it, Loren turned to Aegon. "What do you want us to do now your grace?"

Aegon sighed, he was smart enough to know he was in no position to challenge the Blackreynes again. His army was broken and too heavily demoralized and his dragons were still trying to recover from the battle. Vhagar was still unconcious. Aegon considered his other options, either allow the Blackreynes and Starks to remain independent or accept King Dalton's offer. Before he could speak, Rhaenys beat him to it. "There is only one thing we can do brother."

Aegon grasped her hand, "Rhaenys."

She looked into his eyes, "we cannot rule a divided kingdom and it will not be long before the Blackreynes pick it off bit by bit. Westeros must be united to end these thoughtless wars."

Visenya placed a hand on her sister's shoulder, "are you sure you want to do this?"

Rhaenys nodded, "these people have bled enough, Peace must happen and if an alliance is the price we have to pay for peace then it will be worth it."

Aegon bowed his head, 'Dalton Blackreyne had beaten him at his own game,' he admitted. With a nod of assurance from Rhaenys, Aegon ordered the lords to sent what remained of their army home it did them no good now. Afterwards Aegon went to visit Orys who was still recovering from his battle against Ciron.

"How are you feeling?" Aegon asked his half brother.

"Like I just got my arse handed to me,"Orys replied with a half smile. Aegon returned it as Orys continued, "he hated me. I could see it in his eyes, he wanted to kill me."

"But he didn't," Aegon assured him, "he tried and failed."

Orys shook his head, "it had nothing to do with luck Aegon. Ciron let me live, he beat every inch of me then spared my life, he didn't even take me captive. I cannot fathom why a man with such hate for me would do that."

Aegon frowned, "I wonder the same thing about Dalton, he did the same thing to me. I intend to ask him when we negotiate."

"Is that your intention now?" Ory asked weakly.

Aegon nodded, "do you disapprove?"

Orys shook his head, "I'll support whatever decision you make brother. Personally I believe it's a reasonable choice."

Aegon's smile returned, "thank you Orys, now get some rest, I have a raven to sent."

That night Rhaenys came to his chamber, "how are you feeling?"

Aegon shook his head, "I was a fool," he muttered. Rhaenys placed anhand on his shoulder and he slammed his fist against the table. "How could I be so blind, I was so sure, so close, so confident of victory. I blindly challenged an enemy I didn't know or understand. My lords all pleaded with me to be cautious but I chose to throw it to the wind. Now the people who trusted me and followed me have paid a heavy price for my arrogance."

Rhaenys sat down beside him, "how could you have known."

Aegon sighed, "Dalton was right, I rely so much on our dragons that I couldn't fathom a battle without them. In the end they too paid the price, Vhagar's in a coma, Meraxes is badly wounded and Balerion was dazed."

Rhaenys rubbed his back and Aegon embraced her knowing that while he and his followers were reling from the loss their was like =ly great celebrationg in the Blackreyne camps.

* * *

As the Targaryen host was limping back home, Dalton Blackreyne, Torrhen Stark and their allies were celebrating their victory. They were in Oldstones drinking and cheering at the fact that they had preserved their independence. Mead and ale flowed like a waterfall and fists punded the tables.

"For House Blackreyne," Torrhen roared raising his goblet.

"IRON AND BLOOD," the crowd chanted.

"For House Stark," Dalton responded with the same gesture.

"WINTER IS COMING," the crowed chanted once more.

Dalton drained his goblet and spoke once more, "to our brothers in arms House Reyne of Castamere and House Royce of Runestone. May our brotherhood stand through all ages, steadfast and strong. Against the oppressors, the corrupt and the test of time."

"And the Most Devout," Torrhen added with a grin.

That got the men roaring with laughter, "Did you see the look on the High Septon's Face?" Ronald Reyne asked

"It's a miracle he's able to runs with all that shit in his breeches," Yonaton Royce replied.

"A miracle he's able to run at all," Ronald quipped earning more laughs.

The Arnorians began to chant pounding their fists on the tables, "Dalton, Dalton, Dalton."

The chant continued and soon the northmen the Reynes and Royces joined in until one of the Arnorians climbed up on the table and broke into song. " _Dalton, Dalton, Dalton, Dalton_."

He faced the mighty dragons

When other men would freeze

But then my lords, he raised his sword

and brought 'em to their knees

Dalton, Dalton, the bravest of our kings

Dalton Dalton, He broke the dragon's wings

Dalton Dalton

The Country fell to Darkness

And Shadows ruled the night

No sign of Dawn, he soldiered on

And led us to the light

Dalton, Dalton, he never shook your faith

Dalton, Dalton, let every cup be raised

Dalton, Dalton

He offered us protection

When Tyrants ruled the land

One by one he took them on

They perished at his hand

Dalton, Dalton, he'll fight another day

Dalton, Dalton, just hear this when I say

Dalton, Dalton

He rose up like a savior

When every hope was gone

The Dragon gored and peace restored

His memory will live on

Dalton, Dalton, now and forever

Dalton, Dalton, let every cup be raised

Dalton, Dalton, Dalton

As the men continued to celebrate, Torrhen met Dalton on the balcony. "I must admit Dalton I had my doubts," he admitted as he drained his goblet.

"You would have been a fool not to my friend," Dalton replied. He picked a pitcher of mead up from the floor and filled Torrhens goblet as well as his own.

"Why didn't you tell me about those ...Thestrals was it?" Torrhen wondered, "it would have eased my conscious to know we had something to counter Dragons."

Dalton smiled, "I couldn't risk Aegon finding out, the key is that it needed to be a complete surprise to them in order to throw his army off it's guard."

Torrhen shrugged, "fair enough," as he too a sip of mead. "So what now your grace?" Torrhen asked, "will we march south and finish them off?"

Dalton smiled and shook his head, "no my friend, we must save our energy it's wasted on kicking a man while he's down. Let them lick their wounds, they know they can to no harm to us now." Torrhen shrugged and took another sip.

"Do you think they will agree to your terms?" he asked.

"If he wants peace and a united westeros yes," Dalton replied.

"So you intend to bend the knee if you marry Rhaenys?"

"I intend to submit to the Targaryen reign, I gave Aegon my word on that."

"You may not like being under his rule."

"That is not my intention."

Torrhen turned to Dalton confused, "But you just said-"

"-I said I would submit to his family's REIGN," Dalton clarified, "but I made no promises about his rule. The Targaryens may reign over us for as long as they wish but they will never rule us."

He turned to Torrhen, "of course he doesn't have to know that."

Torrhen smiled nw after all this time he understood, Aegon will take the weight of the crown without getting full control over them. So if they did bend the knee it would be on their own terms. "You are one sly little snake Dalton," he said with a smile, "I'm glad I never have to fight you."

Dalton left early to his guest chamber where Daala was lying on the bed naked save for a sheet. He stripped down and kissed her neck causing her to stir. She smiled as his kisses trailed down the small of her back. "You're early tonight," she said seductively.

Dalton smiled, "it's going to be a busy day tomorrow, I will need my rest." He threw the covers off and crashed his lips on hers."

They broke the kiss and Daala spoke again, "you know brother I've been thinking."

Dalton smirked, "about what?"

We could have stopped the Targaryens at any time, but instead you chose to let them conquer the other kingdoms, the Vale, the Reach the Westerlands and even the if we had acted sooner our brother would still be alive."

"What happened to Tyron was a tragedy," Dalton relied. "But the Targaryens are not to blame, the spineless andals hold to loyalty like a child with a bar of soap. Storm's end would have been able to shrugg off dragonfire but Argilac's lord with their seven pointed star had no faith at all."

Daala nodded, yes they do that quite a bit, but the fact remains." She looked at him, "you wanted the Targaryens to subjurgate the other kingdoms."

Dalton's face remained stoic, "what if I did?"

Daala frowned, "just tell me why."

Dalton shrugged, "why not."

Daala straightened up, "I'm serious, for thousands of years has worked to keep the power of the Valyrians in check. Not the last of their ilk has made plans to conquer westeros and you let him."

"And?"

"Dalton you are far too calculating for this to be a lapse in judgement. Why would you want to give the Targaryens power?"

Now it was Dalton's turn to frown, "because it's the only actions to take that would make a real difference in Westeros."

Daala shook her head, "forgive me but I cannot follow."

Dalton stood up and walked over to a table with a map of westeros on it. Daala followed both naked as their name days. His fingers traced the borders of the seven kingdoms and a smile came to his face.

"I had a vision Daala, of Westeros without Targaryens. The monarchs go back to ruling over their little kingdoms and dogpiling over petty grievances and measly gains. But you know what? It was so boring. We have played this game before and have gotten nowhere fast. The Targaryens are just what this country need to shift the pieces around in just the right way. Let's give the newcomers a chance to earn their merit and when the time it right, Westeros will be talken out of chaos by someone with complete control."

* * *

A fortnight later Aegon Targaryen and Dalton Blackreyne met upon the highest hill of Tridenton which overlooked the sea. Their siblings and allies accompanied them. Ageon and his sisters arrived on Balerion, Dalton and his siblings came riding seven thestrals. Dalton saw their faces fall at the site of his thestrals."

A long table was set and the two groups sat down, Aegon and Dalton stared each other down before they each bowed their heads in respect."

"Aegon."

"Dalton."

Aegon didn't know how do begin, yet Dalton broke the silence with the last question Aegon expected him to ask, "how are Meraxes and Vhagar?"

Aegon was surprised not only by the question but that fact that Dalton seemed genuinely concerned about the dragons. Finally he said, "Meraxes is very weak but she will recover with time, Vhagar has yet to regain consciousness."

Dalton nodded, "well she did take a nasty hit." A pause hung in the air before he spoke again, "if it's any consoulation you did better than you think."

Aegon and his sisters looked at him as Dalton continued, "Grendall and Dakkon were our most expierienced veterans. Tha fact that your dragons were able to slay Grendall and incapacitate Dakkon is a considerable achievement."

He turned to the other lords and interlocked his fingers, "I'm sure you all have questions, so feel free to ask them."

"You and Ciron made it clear that you could have killed us easily," Aegon said. "Yet you spared us and didn't even take us captive. Why?"

"The dual was not about killing you enemy," Dalton replied. "It's about proving a point, that would be hard to do if your dead, since the point becomes useless."

"What was the point, how badly you could whip us?" Orys asked.

Dalton shook his head, "no the point was to humble you. Never think you are invincible, for their is always a bigger fish redy to sswallow you whole. Besides killing you two would be wasteful and unessessary."

Rhaenys spoke next, "Jaenara Belearys traveled to Sothoryos. and we've seen it's people, their barely human. You people look nothing like them."

Dalton shook his head, "no we wouldn't, if only you had seen the continent and it's people during the golden age. Things were so different back then."

Now Visenya spoke, "Veiga said you bred these things a long time ago, why?"

Dalton shrugged, "Essos had Dragons and Sothoros had Wyverns, our people didn't have anything to protect us against them. So we got creative and made beasts of our own."

"I must know," Sharra Arryn spoke up. "How long have you had these creatures."

Dalton shrugged, "give or take, 10,000 years, according to the ancient scrolls."

Aegon nearly choked at that before letting out a short derisive laugh, "you're telling me that your family has owned lightning spitting flying horses this whole time. Why have we not heard of them before."

Dalton smiled slyly, "that's because we never used them before."

"And why not," Aegon challenged. "with creatures like that you could bring the world to heel. You could trample over anyone that dared oppose you , With those thestrals and your military prowess, it would be easy."

"Aye, and that's the point," Dalton replied leaving Aegon confused. "IT'S TOO EASY. It would be a glorious thing to conquer the world with Thestrals, and even more glorious to do so WITHOUT them. That is true power Aegon Targaryen, that is what seperates you from us."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Aegon demanded.

Unlike you we do not treat them as beasts of burden. Thestrals are our companions, not tools of war, their power is wasted killing talking monkey's."

"We do not treat them as beast of burdon," Aegon insisted.

Dalton cocked an eyebrow, "really than why are they fighting your war." He smirked, "name one time you didn't use your dragons in a fight, you name one time and I swear I'll take it all back."

That silenced Aegon and Dalton continued, "besides if we started conquering the world it would only be a matter of time before we crossed paths with House Whitehall and that's the last thing we want is to catch these people up in a war that isn't their concern."

"House Whitehall?" Aegon wondered intrigued.

"House Blackreyne's feudal enemy," Torrhen Stark explained. "Surely you are aware of a growing power in the east."

Visenya snapped her fingers in realization, "the kingdom of Alvion, a feudalistic society of religious fanatics. Some of the dragonlords tried to traveled there, but those that went never returned."

"Arch enemies?" The high septon wondered, "perhaps we should ask them to help us beat you to the ground."

Instead of growing worried the Blackreynes only laughed, Dalton nearly fell out of his chair before responding. "I admit that would be quite an encounter. If you think we treat you bad, wait until they get a hold of you."

"Why would the Whitehalls be hostile towards them?" Harlen Tyrell asked.

Dalton smiled, "one of the few things our cultures have in common is our respect for the Children of the Forest, but the Whitehalls believe that any enemy of the children is unworthy of life." He then waved his hand, "but that is a tale for another time, what matters now is negotiating a peace between out kingdoms to avoid any more unnessessary bloodshed."

"We have made a decision Dalton," Rhaenys replied. "For the sake of peace let us unite our houses in marraige."

Dalton turned to her, "I do not wish to force you into something you do not want, Rhaenys," Dalton said. "Think carefully before you say anymore, " He locked eyes with her, "is this truly what you want."

Rhaenys nodded slowly, "it is."

Dalton studied her for a moment trying to find a trace of falsehood in her. When he found none he nodded and turned to Aegon. "Then I will bend my knee to you and shall serve you faithfully. But make no mistake King Aegon should you prove to be a tyrant I will not hesitate to bring you down, and you know now that is not a mere threat." With that he removed his crown and placed it on the table.

Aegon sighed and turned to the Starks, "What of you, will you follow your friends example?"

Torrhen nodded, "Dalton and I discusssed this and I'll not be the one who shattered a good peace." So Torrhen followed the Blackreynes example and removed hos crown and placed it on the table.

The next day Aegon's official coronation was held. All the Lords of Westeros had gathered. As Rhaenys placed the crown of Valyrian steel on Aegon's head the Great Lords bowed, followed closely by their bannermen.

Once his coronation was complete Aegon started giving the new titles to his new Bannermen.

Harlen Tyrell was named Warden of the South while Loren Lannister was named Warden of the West. Sharra Arryn became Warden of the East and Torrhen Stark was named Warden of the North.

Dalton Blackreyne was given a seat on the small council as Master of War and the new titles of Warlord of Troyad and Warden of the Seas.

Not long after the coronation of Aegon Targaryen Dalton Blackreyne and Rhaenys Targaryen were married in a Targaryen ceremony in Tridenton since Blackreynes never practiced such things. Aegon had renounced the faith anf returned to the gods of his people. Converting didn't seem to matter since he realized no mattter who he chose someone would be vexed

A great feast was held and as the night went on Rhaenys found herself enjoying Dalton's company. It was like he was a copletely different person. The stern hard, calculated man had melted into a warm friendly and pleasant persona."

"It seems I had judged you wrong Lord Dalton." she said.

"A man must become a different person in a time of war, Dalton explained. "Now that the war is over their is no need to be cold and hard."

Rhaenys nodded and kissed his cheek and took his hand, standing up she beckoned him to follow her, Dakton smiled widely as he happily oblidged. She led him to the godswood where there was a spring at the foot of the heart tree. She stripped off her dress as Dalton underdened himself of his own clothing articles.

They took a moment to eye each other both comparing each other to their own sibling lovers and happy with what they saw. After a moment they embraced crashing their lips to gether in a passionate kis theit eyes filled with lust as they sank into the pool and their in the sight of the old gods they made love under the light of the full moon.


	16. Reign of the Dragon

The union of Rhaenys Targaryen and Dalton Blackreyne brought an end to the War of Conquest. Dalton took Rhaenys with him to Arnor in the Sentinel Isles so she may get to know her new subjects. As they docked at Stormgaard (formerly Torturer's Deep), they were greeted by overwhelming cheers. Commoners lined the main road to see the face of their new queen. Bells rang and Rhaenys found herself showered with small flowers given to her by smiling children. As they reached Arnor Rhaenys stared in awe at the massive fortress. The night was accompanied by celebrating and feasting as the lords of the Stepstones pledged blood oaths to Rhaenys and her legacy.

The next day Rhaenys began exploring her new home in order to get to know it as well as the staff that ran it. Despite it's intimidating appearance on the outside, Arnor was quite welcoming within and found several places that she found to her liking. One was the great library where she found books of all types including ones on extinct languages. Another was called the World Room. Inside was a whole floor that showed the map of the world, including the four continents Westeros, Essos, Sothoros, and Ulthos and the islands including Ib and the Summer Isles.

As she explored she came across the Garden. The Garden was a beautiful valley surrounded on all sides by cliffs save for the wall of Arnor. It had waterfalls, meadows, trees of all types blooming flowers and a small lake in the center. A paradise protected by a mighty stronghold. After speaking with her husband, Dalton gave her a chamber that had a balcony overlooking the Garden.

Walking along the garden one day she came across a glass building. Curious she walked over and went inside. Rhaenys found herself in a glass garden a fountain ran in the middle and all around were blue roses, she saw one in particular and plucked it inhaling it's sweet scent

"That's a nice one," a voice said causing Rhaenys to spin around in surprise. A slight man with his brother's hair and eyes appeared from behind a tree he leaned on a cane with one hand and held a book in the other.

He smiled, "other colors have their beauty but not as unique a blue in my opinion." He bowed, "Jangus Blackreyne my queen."

"I'm not a queen," Rhaenys said solemnly.

"You are to them," Jangus replied, "and to us."

Rhaenys didn't know how to respond to this when a roar was heard. Rhaenys turned to see a small herd of thestrals they surrounded a large rock were Matthra sat overseeing it's pack. Two thestrals were now circling each other, off to the side was a thestral that lacked the ridge of spikes that lines the neck, (a female). After a few roars and shrieks they started fighting, slashing and biting with claws, wingspike and teeth.

Rhaenys turned to Jangus who seemed unconcerned. "Why doesn't Matthra stop them?"

"The Patriarch doesn't interfere with a mating duel," Jangus replied and Thestrals don't kill other thestrals.

Rhaenys was surprised that such a creature was capable of such civility Dragons often killed each other in grabs for territory. She looked back to the fight and saw that one had emerged victorious with his foreleg pinning the defeated Thestral's head to the ground. The defeated let out a snort and the victor released him and went to retrieve it's new mate but not before presenting her with a smooth stone.

She looked to Jangus who heard her unspoken question. "The stone will be the first of what will make up their nest."

Rhaenys looked around, it's a nice place for a nest."

Jangus nodded, "this place was a futile attempt by my ancestors to rebuild our land," he explained. "Despite their efforts it will never feet like home." He looked around, "now it seems that this IS home and Sothoros is the strange unknown."

"I often wonder what Valyria looked like in it's prime," Rhaenys said. "I wonder if it will be welcoming."

Jangus shrugged, "I guess neither of our families will ever know."

During her time in Arnor, Rhaenys learned that Jangus had spoken the truth. Despite not being married to a king, the people still addressed her as queen. Being the sister of the king and her husband a member of the small council she spent little time in Arnor. But in the time she was there she spent it tending to the well being of the commoners. Since their well being was a top priority for her, she proved to be consistently great at it. This did not go unnoticed by her husband and he put her in charge of it. This gave her complete authority on the matter and her future actions further endowed the people to her. "Our lady's good heart surpasses her beauty," the commoners said. The Rules set up by Rhaenys earned her the love of the commoners and the respect of the lords and ladies and many of her edicts would remain long after her death. If she didn't have to spend so much time in court it is likely she would have done more.

One of the first things Aegon aspired to do during his reign was build a central capitol for Westeros. As it happens Dalton revealed that Tridenton was only half finished. Tridenton was meant to be two parts one north of the Blackwater in Troyad and one south of it in the Stormlands. This had been arranged during the reign Argilac Durrendon and Dev Blackreyne decades ago when they formed their pact. Dalton offered to help Aegon fulfill this endeavor and give the Targaryens a city for themselves.

So it was that the northern part of the City would still be called Tridenton but the southern part would be named Kings Landing since the Stormlands was the first kingdom Aegon had conquered. It was finally decided that the corners of each city which overlooked the mouth of the Blackwater bay would be dominated by two structures. The Black Tower which was the in Tridenton and The Red Keep in Kings Landing. The Black Tower was already partially built with it's base being the drum structure at the high hill

This was no easy task the southern city was meant to rival the size of Tridenton, the plans were meant for King's Landing to stretch from the shores of the Blackwater all the way to the edges of the Kingswood. Dalton predicted that the project would take at least two decades.

Unlike Troyad, King's Landing had no hills that had to be worked around so the foundations could be laid out easier. People got to work right away, first laying out the foundations and building the sewer drains and deep wells. Once this was done the walls were next, followed by the Red Keep. Dalton suggested building Kings Landing in the style of Valyrian architecture in order to make it stand out. So together they began discussing how the Red Keep would be designed with Aegon managing the architecture and Dalton handling the defensive features.

A year into Aegon's Reign a small fleet of Volantene ships were spotted sailing into the Blackwater. They docked at the harbor and from it's holds came dozens of Old Blood Volantene led by a woman of all things. They were escorted to the throne room of the Red Keep where they were greeted by Aegon and his sisters.

The leader of the group an tall graceful woman with the typical looks of a Valyrian silver hair and violet eyes. She stepped forward and bowed deeply, "Good king Aegon I am Trianna of Volantis leader of the Elephant group that now stands before you."

"Welcome to Westeros," Aegon began. "What can I do for the Triarchs of Volantis.

"Volantis has fallen good King," Trianna said bitterly.

The Targaryens were shocked at the fate of Valyria's First Daughter and turned to Dalton. Dalton put his hands up and shrugged, "It wasn't my doing.'

"Who were these invaders?" Aegon demanded.

Trianna shook her head, "we do not know we haven't seen people like this before. Their host camped outside our walls and gave us an ultimatum surrender or face subjugation. Naturally we refused and sent our host out to meet them. What happened next was anything but a battle, it was a complete and absolute slaughter. Their cavalry mowed down our host like fire through silk without suffering a single loss. After dealing with our host they turn to us, reducing our gates to splinters and swarming the city. They rounded us up and exiled all those who refused to bend the knee."

"Can you describe them?" Visenya asked.

Trianna nodded, "their leaders are as tall as the Sarnori of the north but their skin is pale as salt."

"Their Banner," Dalton cut in, "Is it a white winged horse on a field of gold?"

Trianna nodded, "yes my Lord."

Dalton nodded, "House Whitehall," he confirmed. "It seems they have expanded their kingdom all the way to the Rhoyne."

Aegon vaguely remembered before he planned his invasion, still reeling from the aftermath of the Great Slaver War, the Triarchs of Volantis had come to him with a plea for help, but Aegon refused. Now it was in the hands of House Blackreyne's ancient rivals. But it was too late for regrets, he knew he had to focus on the here and now. "So are you asking for our help in retaking Volantis?" he asked.

Trianna shook her head, "no we can never go back my king. But when we heard that the last Dragonlord was building a new city in the west we chose to come and help in it's construction, I have brought, architechs, masons, merchants, Scholars and all others who do not wish to live under the thrall of the invaders to help in this endeavor."

After discussing the matter with Orys and his sisters, Aegon welcomed the new arrivals and along with valyrian refugees that were living in Troyad became the first permanent residents of Kings Landing. With aid from Trianna and her followers, The progress on Kings Landing accelerated, the first to be completed was the Red Keep followed by the walls and a network of streets.

Like Tridenton, Kings Landing was divided into two parts, but unlike Tridenton which separated the military and the worker district, King's Landing was meant to separate the Royalty, nobility and gentry from the commoners.. The inner city had manses, palaces, temples dedicated to the gods of Valyria, courtyards, cloisters and cellars. The outer city had the shops and homes and storehouses. One notable thing about Kings Landing was the large numbers of statues everywhere ranging from all types of creatures, sphinxes, gargoyles, manticores, basilisks, cockatrices, griffins, hellhounds, wyverns, demons and of course dragons. Then Came the setting up of the Iron Throne. Aegon took the swords of those that had fought for him against the Blackreynes and had it melted down into a throne.

The fall of Volantis caused stirrings in the Triumvirate of Braavos, Qohor and Lys. With the emergence of this new power, they were concerned that the newcomers would turn on them next. So they sent delegates to Tridenton to discuss with the Blackreynes how they were to deal with this.

A great feast was held before the negotiations commenced. Dalton predicted that they would recieve a visit from them soon. As they were eating Malgus entered the hall, "pardon me brother but we are about to have company."

"Pegasi?" Dalton asked looking up, Malgus nodded darkly.

Silence filled the room as the Blackreynes dropped their utensils and looked towards the Malgus. The brothers had ther fists clenched and the women turned hard. Dalton remained calm as he wiped his mouth with a piece of cloth and stood up. "How far out?"

"About 20 miles brother," Malgus replied.

Dalton sighed and nodded, and walked out of the room his siblings followed. "I don't understand, what's going on?" Aegon called after them.

Dalton turned around, "remember how we talked about the Whitehalls?" Aegon nodded and Dalton continued, "Well you're about to meet them."

Aegon and his sisters headed for the balcony and could just make out ten white dots in the horizon. Curious to see the Blackreynes longtime enemy they made their way down to the Courtyard followed by the great lords and the High Septon

The ten creatures landed and Rhaenys gazed upon what was possibly the most beautiful creatures she had ever seen. In stark contrast to the thestrals, these steeds had wings akin to an eagle rather than a dragon, their pearly white hides were a soft as silk and their legs ended in cloven hooves. On their heads were long platinum coloured horn that gleamed in the sunlight and their eyes were like two pieces of turquoise stones.

Their riders dismounted and removed their helms. The Blackreynes were big men, yet these newcomers seem to tower over them standing at least seven feet. Their physic was lean and sinewy compared to the stocky build of the Blackreynes and had pale skin almost albino. If naught for their haughty expressions they could be considered comely with curly nut-brown hair that fell to their shoulders and shifty eyes the color of amber.

Two seemed to be the leaders of the group. One was in his thirties and looked like a king with silvery armour and a flowing golden cloak. A greatsword was strapped to his shoulder. his lip was curled as he slowly looked around. His face was proud and arrogant as if everyone else was beneath him. A circlet of platinum adorned his head.

The other man was completely different he looked to be thrice the age of the first man. His face was kind and looked like a child's favorite grandfather. His snow white beard and hair looked like they had never been cut since they extended a great length and kept from draggin on the floor with laces. Though he was bend with age and leaned on a staff of ashwood, Rhaenys could tell that he must have been a splendid figure in his prime. She guessed that he was a pious man yet unlike the high septon who was plump and garbed in rich silks and satin of seven colours, this man was gaunt and dressed in a simple robe of linen so white it made your eyes hurt. A simple piece of green rope held the robe in place.

Dalton turned to the stunned assembly, "Everybody this is Arthas Whitehall, Lord of Eridon and Chancellor of Alvion. The elder man beside him is the High Prophet head of their religious order."

The two glared at each other for a moment before Arthas spoke, "Blackreyne."

"Whitehall," Dalton replied. One could have killed an army with amount of venom that poured from their mouths. "So to what do I owe this unexpected and most unwelcome pleasure?" Dalton wondered.

"I 'ad to see for myself," Arthas replied. "Vhen Ve 'eard ze rumors ve didn't believe zem." He looked towards Rhaenys and smirked, "alas it seems zey are."

"What rumor is that?" Dalton asked though he already realized the answer.

"Ze Destral 'as gotten in bed vith ze dragons," Arthas replied. "Though seeing ze prize you obtained I can now understand vhy." He eyes looked hungrily at Rhaenys who backed away instinctively. Aegon and Visenya placed their hands on their swords. Whitehall turned back to Dalton. "I believed zat our 'ouses 'ad an understanding about zis."

"We did," Dalton agreed, "but that was when their people were a threat to our kingdoms."

Arthas let out a derisive laugh, "You always are too soft vith people Blackreyne just like zees un'oly andals you seem so fond of."

"I am fond of them," Dalton replied, "especially when they become an annoyance. Then I am particularly fond of slaughtering their Warrior's Sons and Poor Fellows." Before he could continue the Prophet spoke next his voice soft and calm.

"Zees sub-'umans dared to raise zair blades against ze ancient ones, destroying ze 'oly veervoods all in ze name of zair false idols. Yet you let zem remain to breed like cockroaches under a rock desecrating zis sacred land vith zair filthy footsteps."

"They are abominations," one warrior's son foolishly declared. "An affront to the light of the seven."

This statement was not taken well as the whitehalls drew their blades and pointe it at the andal knight who has spoken. "BLASPHEMER!" Arthas roared raising his blade up. All the westerosi took note of the weapon, it seem to glow unnaturally and against the sun it seemed like a mirror so no one could look at it directly. "YOU WILL FEED THE MAGHOTS AND WORMS YOU UNWORTHY PARASITE!"

"Stay your blades all you!" the order came not from Dalton but from the Old Prophet. his voice sounded smooth yet strong and full of authority. "You as well Arthas," the prophet continued, we will not shed blood in holy land."

Arthas sighed and sheathed his sword, "Forgive me hierarch," he said bowing his head, I forgot myself."

The Prophet placed his hand on Arthas' shoulder, "your devotion is admirable, but you must show restraint. I understand their presence angers you but their blood is not worth soiling your blade over." The Targaryens and Faith looked at each other. Arthas may have been the chancellor but it was clear who was the true authority of Eridon.

"Now see here," High Septon said stepping towards the old man. "We serve the will of the gods and I will not hear blasphemy from pagan worshipping cu-"

Before he could finish the Prophet grabbed him by the throat and with strength no man his age had any business posessing lifted the heavy set men off the ground with one hand until he was at eye level all the while leaning on his staff. "You can't 'elp it," the Prophet said softly, "it's your nature. "But I did not live a century to banter crooked vords vith a vitless vorm."

Dalton chose to cut the 'formalities,' if you could call it that. "You did not fly all this way just to leerat dragons Arthas, now what do you want."

Arthas smirked, "You Blackreynes like to do business so let's talk business."

Dalton cocked an eyebrow, "A Whitehall wanting to talk business? This should be interesting." So everybody headed for the great hall of the Red Keep to discuss a 'non-aggression pact' as Arthas put it, The men debated well into the night before coming to terms.

"So we are agreed zat ze Rhoyne vould act as a border between ze territories of Eridon and the Triumvirate," Arthas concluded. "Eridon would get not only ze Delta of ze Royne but all lands east of ze great river and south of ze Selhoru river. Zis means that ve vould also get ze city of Selhorys and ze ruins of Sar Mel."

"And you swear to go no further," Dalton asked.

Arthas smirked, "no further WEST Blackreyne. I believe ve vill have plenty to do vith ze Dothraki Sea, but you need not concern yourself about zat."

"I admit the idea of having another ally against the dothraki is a somewhat welcome change." The Qohor ambassador said."

This statement caused Arthas and the other Whitehalls to laugh, "hardly goat-man, ve are far from allies and even further from friends. Don't get in our vay and ve'll leave you alone. Is zat fair enough for you?" The Qohorik gulped and nodded.

In addition to the arranged borders the Whitehalls were determined to do their part for westeros and sent a host of 500 Martyrans to safeguard the Isle of Faces along with 5 Paladin Knights led by a disciple. When the Westerosi saw the Martyrans for the first time they reeled in horror. Their skin was scarred and had a leathery look to it, Metal masks covered their faces, Their armour was just as strange, the helm had two horns in the side and crest of smaller ones down the middle. The chainmail was covered in pointed studs with curved spikes at the elbows and clawed Gauntlets. But the strangest of all was the vambraces. These Vambraces wrought in steal had a three foot blade that extended past over the hands. What was most disturbing was that these Vambraces seemed to be fused into the arms themselves.

One Martyran past a Warrior's Son and spoke a single worn. His voice could barely be described as human. Being a raspy gurgle one would have called it animalistic. Yet he spoke all the same and the word was unmistakable. "Heretic." Once they were on the Isle they were never seen again.

When they finally took their leave Rhaenys approached one of the pegasus. the creature didn't seem to mind and nuzzled against her when she caressed it's nose and neck. But when she went to stroke it's wings, a hand grabbed hers. She turned in surprise to find her husband standing behind her wide eyed. He shook his head in a silent warning. Backing off Dalton reached in between the Pegusus' feathers and pulled out something. It looked like a feather and was even shaped and detailed like one. But it was the size of a large arrowhead and gleamed like platinum.

Dalton then took his cloak and ran the feather it down and gently as possible. the cloak severed in two as though by magic. he then threw the feather to the ground where it embedded itself in the stone.

Rhaenys recoiled in shock, she came dangerously close to loosing her hand had Dalton not stopped her.

Arthas and the Whitehalls emerged from the keep and mounted their Pegasi. "I'll be watching you Blackreyne," he said with a sneer as a farewell.

"You as well Whitehall," Dalton replied with a snarl. Arthas smirked and took off with his companions close behind.

The encounter with the Whitehalls changed everyone's view of the Blackreynes. They now understood the danger they faced and why they strived to avoid it. The Andals now realized that their was an enemy worse than the Blackreynes. The High Sparrow even approached Dalton in wonder. "I have to know the man said rubbing his neck, what would have happened if they had landed in westeros?"

Dalton turned to the man, "If they want a race of people dead they make sure it is dead in every sense of the word. By the time they were done with you, the world would never believe you ever existed even as a myth."

Dalton then left the Septon to stare after the House that would have wiped them out.

As King's Landing slowly but surely took form Aegon continued to consolidate his family's power. On the back of Balerion Aegon traveled all over Westeros negotiating with the Great Lords. he often left the ruling to his sisters and the small council only getting involved when necessary. Rhaenys and Dalton spent much of their time here helping Aegon rule and management of the Sentinel Isles often went to Dalton's siblings Daala, Malgus and Jangus. Ciron, Cora and Tara however chose to accompany Dalton to Kings Landing.

Despite the years of prosperity things were far from perfect, behind doors, there was a war between Aegon and Dalton. Despite his place on Aegon's Small Council Aegon largely ignored him and the position he was given was mostly ceremonial and political as well as a way to keep his favorite sister close. Dalton was once reported to have laughed when Aegon forged the Iron throne stating. "Two hundreds blades of good steel and you use it to make a chair, and people called Argilac Arrogant."

One of the reasons was that Dalton was the only one to defy him and succeed, giving Aegon not only his only defeat besides Dorne but one that took his favorite wife from him. Another reason was despite Dalton surrendering his crown to Aegon, it was no secret that many people in Troyad still raised their glasses to Dalton Blackreyne who in their eyes was still king in all but name. But the biggest reason was that inwardly Aegon feared Dalton since he was the only one who could bring down his dynasty.

The two men would constantly bicker and argue for hours on even a single issue. Raising taxes, to changing laws, and one of the most outlandish was Aegon attempting to bring an end to the Blackreyne military academies. The academies were the source of House Blackreynes military power and to end it would cripple their ability to wage wars they were so good at. No matter how hard Aegon pressed him to obey the new edict, Dalton would not buckle.

Only one thing kept them from tearing each other's throats out, Rhaenys. Due to the affection they both shared for her, Rhaenys would often come in as the peacemaker and help the two come to a compromise.

But Rhaenys couldn't solve everything, one thing she had little sway in was how justice was served. One incident in particular proved this. A group of men from the Reach entered the court demanding justice for their sister. Her husband had caught her in the act of adultery and had started beating her with a rod and it is likely he would have killed her had a concerned neighbor not called on a nearby patrol to intervene. Though she survived the beating had left her mentally and physically broken.

The man defended himself by stating that according to Andal Law a man had a right to chastise his wife with a rod no thicker than a thumb. The brother protested that he struck her eighty times which the husband did not deny.

Rhaenys spoke with maesters and septons and declared that a man had a right to strike an unlawful wife but the blows were limited to six one fir each of the seven gods of the Faith save for the Stranger. As such 74 of the husband's 80 strikes were declared unlawful and she permitted the brothers to match those blows on the husband.

Instead of accepting this the brothers turned to Dalton and asked his thoughts on the matter. Dalton replied there was a difference between discipline and abuse and the Husband's actions were unquestionably considered abuse. "A man who abuses a woman or child is no man at all and thus didn't deserve to be a man." With permission from the Brothers the Husband was dragged away where his manhood was sawed off, his adam's apple removed and the hand he used to strike his wife chopped off. Once this was done Dalton had him released and had apothecaries attend to the wife. The result was the husband was now a eunuch with a high pitched voice which made him the laughing stock of everyone in town. Unable to live with the situation, the husband hung himself from a tree.

Despite this, Rhaenys Rule of Six was applied to all the andal kingdoms of the Reach, the Vale, The Westerlands and the Stormlands. Troyad, and the North had their own ways of dealing with adultery and none involved striking their spouse.

Rhaenys hoped to bind Westeros more closely by arranging marriages between certain houses. Most of these continued smoothly but one in particular caused great unrest in the Small Council. Rhaenys tried to arrange a pact between Ronnel Arryn and Torrhen Stark's daughter Arya. This proposal was heavily opposed by both houses and the Blackreynes. Dalton himself sensed the danger immediately. "A forced marriage between the foremost house of the First Men and the Foremost House of the Andals is a recipe of disaster."

Instead Dalton recommended that the Targaryens forge bonds with the Great Houses by marrying their offspring to them. Not doing so risked alienating their new bannermen. Aegon refused intent on keeping his valyrian bloodline pure. Visenya on the other hand took this advice to heart. The issue was debated for a week but despite the effort of the other Parties Aegon determined that the wedding would still be held, but their would be a price, Arya would bring not only her handmaidens but a force of Knights would be present at the Vale to protect her. Since Sharra refused to have Northmen and Arnorians in the Eyrie it was decided that the knights defending Arya would be from House Royce.

Aegon and Rhaenys had been wed for a decade and despite spending ten nights with Rhaenys for every one with Visenya, she had yet to produce an heir for her brother. Her marraige to Dalton proved to be considerably more fruitful. A year after they were wed Rhaenys gave birth to her first child with Dalton a healthy boy. To everyone's surprise he gave his son a Valyrian name Daemon, This would become a common occurrence within the Blackreyne family to have Valyrian names. After Daemon came a girl Rhaenyra then another boy Drayton. Both the Blackreynes and the people of westeros took this as a sign that the gods considered the union blessed.

Argella Durrendon, Orys Baratheon's wife also gave birth shortly after the Conquest, a black haired boy named Tiberius. Sadly tragedy struck when just days later Tiberius caught a fever and died. Orys had been away at court during these events and was inconsolable. Given that he had missed his son's birth and sudden death. Argella didn't eat for days afterwards. Seven years after the conquest Rhaenys would produce her brother with a son Aenys, a sickly boy, Visenya responded in kind with her own son Maegor who was the direct opposite of his older half-brother.

Nevertheless this didn't stop any of them from fooling round. Aegon still spent many nights with Rhaenys during her time in the Capitol. During Aegon's nights with Rhaenys, Visenya often found company with the Blackreynes, particularly, Dalton Daala and even Veiga who shared her fascination and practice of magic. Aegon once caught Rhaenys in bed with the Blackreyne twins Cora and Tara. Instead of being intimidated they asked Aegon if he wanted to join them the king was too off guard to become angry or respond to the request. Rhaenys herself often entertained comely men.

With the death of his son Orys decided to confront the person he dreaded about something that had egged him for years. He entered Ciron's chambers and the man in question was sitting reading a book.

Ciron looked up at the intruder and his eyes narrowed when he saw who it was. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said as a greeting, "how can I help you today 'cousin'.'

Orys stepped forward, I have to know something," he said. "During the conquest you ranted on and on about how you were going to kill me." Ciron nodded and Orys continued. "Yet during the war of the wings you did no such thing."

Ciron smiled knowingly and set the book down, "Ahh I see you are wondering why I didn't follow through with my vow." Orys nodded and Ciron continued, "did you have your own men guarding Argella or stormlanders?"

"My own," Orys confirmed. Ciron nodded in acknowledgement. "If I were to kill you what would they have done with her?"

Orys eyes narrowed, "are you implying they would have harmed her?"

Ciron shrugged, 'It would not be the first time a Storm's End Garrison sworn to protect her turned on her.

"My men would do nothing of the sort," Orys insisted. "I trained them myself , they know restraint."

Ciron laughed bitterly, "I'm sure Argilac thought the very same thing about his own men and, well, look how that turned out." Before Orys could respond Ciron stood up and closed the distance between them. "Can you truly look me in the eye and say that it isn't remotely possible?"

Orys tried but a sliver of doubt nagged ast his mind. Finally he said, "I don't know."

Ciron nodded, "neither do I, perhaps they would have been honorable and perhaps not. I loved my brother and he loved Argella. I would not risk her harmed over my own reckless grief and anger."

"So now you know she is safe from harm why not finish it." Orys challenged.

Ciron hmphed, "as tempted as I am I can't do that, not anymore." Orys gave him a confused look and Ciron continued. "My Brother is married to your half sister, through this act we are bound by blood. Blackreynes do not harm their own kin." Then in a surprising gesture he held out his hand. "we may never be friends Orys Baratheon but perhaps we can reconcile and move forward."

Orys stared at the taller man suspiciously but found no trace of falsehood finally he took Ciron's hand and shook it. "I'll see you around cousin." He said and walked out of the room leaving Orys standing their surprised at what had transpired.

Aegon's relationship with Visenya had never been as warm as it had been with Rhaenys. But his reign as king seem to drive them apart even more. Despite being his lawful wife in the eyes of the Seven, they often bickered and had very different views.

If there was a bright spot to her reign it was her dragon. Vhagar was woken from her coma with the help of Blackreyne apothecaries and was expected to make a full recovery. As Aegon pushed her further and further away she found herself in the company of her Blackreyne In-laws particularly since they shared her sentiments and held very similar ideals. As such Visenya's strongest supporters in court were none other than House Blackreyne.

With such a storm brewing many believe war was inevitable, but one event would change the course of Aegon's reign. One that would nearly fracture the continent and at the same time forge it together. It would happen in the Deserts of Dorne.


	17. The Thestral and the Rising Sun

**The Dornish War**

Dalton Blackreyne already had a reputation for being a brilliant commander, but it was the First Dornish War that cemented his place as the greatest military commander of his age. This would not just be a war between the two most independent kingdoms, it was a battle of arguably the two greatest minds of the time, and would result in the most elaborate military operation in the history of the world.

It was no secret that Aegon wished to make Westeros whole by conquering Dorne so he spent many years preparing for an invasion. This led to a very heated argument with Dalton who was highly opposed to a war with Dorne. the siblings of both men could hear the two rage against each other for hours.

"The Conquest is not complete until Dorne comes into the fold," Aegon declared.

"You have the Stormlands, you have the Vale, the Reach, the bloody Westerlands and I gave you the North and Troyad. What more do you want?!"

"We must have it all," Aegon replied. "An independent Dorne represents a dangerous foe. You know how hostile they are towards the Stormlanders and the Reachmen."

"A war with Dorne is completely unnessessary and serves no purpose at all."

"It serves to fully unite Westeros Dalton," Aegon snapped.

"I am not sending my people to die in your petty wars, just because you're not satisfied with what you have. My house has had close relations with House Yronwood when the Ghiscari were nothing but sheep fuckers and snake eaters. I will not destroy that friendship with a unprovoked attack."

Aegon stared the man down, "we are to war with Dorne and that's final."

Dalton's eyes narrowed, "if that is your wish fine but you will have to do it without me."

Aegon came up to Dalton's face, "I made you my master of war," Aegon declared, "you will do as I say."

Dalton let out a bitter laugh, "I don't have to do anything." With that Dalton walked out leaving a stunned Aegon in his wake.

Aegon's invasion began in a conventional manner with Aegon and Orys marching a great host through the Princes Pass and the Boneway while Rhaenys and Visenya took the dornish seats on their march to the dornish capitol. Sadly the results were the same as when Rhaenys came a few years earlier, the dornish seats were mostly abandoned and those that remained were comprised of the old the young and the weak. In other words those unable to fight so the Targaryens gained little glory from these meager rewards.

House Toland made a fool out of Aegon by sending their mad fool to act as a champion. Aegon slew the fool with ease but by the time he realised the deception the Tolands had fled.

Armies that marched through the Prince's Pass and the Boneway were harassed every step of the way by the dornish skirmishers. Taking advantage of the high ground, the Dornish rained rocks, arrows and spears down on the approaching hosts. Lords and their men were murdered in the night.

Nevertheless Aegon was able to secure most of the Dornish seats. When they finally reached Sunspear they gathered what remained of the Dornish court and crowned themselves the victors. They left Lord Rosby in charge of the Castle while Lord Harlan Tyrell was given the task of putting down the insurgents. Dalton received reports about the campaign and was high at the craftiness of the Dornish. When the 'victory' at Sunspear reached him, he laughed so hard he could barely stand.

But Aegon's 'victory' was short lived. No sooner had he returned to Kings Landing that Dorne launched a massive revolt. The attack came with such speed and surprise that Aegon almost never learned of the attack until a fortnight later. The garrisons were massacred, lords were captured Knights were tortured by dornish lords. The Dornishmen made sport out of the tortures seeing who could last the longest or inflict the most pain.

In the Retaking of Sunspear, Lord Rosby was thrown off the Spear Tower by Meria herself. Harlan Tyrell marched to try and retake Sunspear but his host disappeared in the sands and was never seen again.

Orys Baratheon tried to launch a counter offensive but was ambushed just north of Yronwood. The Dornish showered Orys' host with ricks and spears. By the end of it, Orys Baratheon was captured along with a thousand others. The capture of Orys Baratheon was one of the biggest disasters of the war.

Lord Wyl kept Orys and the other lords imprisoned for a year before sending a ransom to Aegon. Aegon would pay each man's weight in gold to getting them back. But when they were returned. Aegon found that his Half-brother and the other lords were missing their sword hands. Lord Wyl's message was clear. These men would never raised their hands against Dorne again. Orys was a changed man after the loss of his hand and became embittered for the rest of his life.

After the botched Ransom, Aegon struck back by unleashing his dragons, castles and settlements were burned again and again killing thousands

Aegon went further and placed bounties on all of the Dornish nobles, Dorne responded in kind with bounties of her own. While it seemed like a sound move, the bounties the Martells placed on the Targaryens would prove to be a grave mistake, one that would turn the tide of the Dornish War.

One day as the Targaryens and Blackreynes were riding along surveying the progress of the ever growing Kings Landing, they came under attack by a swarm of assassins on the rooftops. Aegon was injured while Dalton and Visenya drew their blades and along with their personal guards cut down their attackers. Together Visenya and Dalton held off the assailants long enough for reinforcements to arrive and drive them off.

In the skirmish, Rhaenys was thrown from her horse and stabbed in the abdomen. Had Dalton not come to her a moment later she would have been killed. Enraged Dalton and Visenya cut their way to the Red Keep where apothecaries were able to save her. Though Rhaenys survived the encounter but it didn't matter the damage was done. Despite his previous reservations about the war, the Martells had now made it personal. The next day Dalton resumed his position as master of war and together he plotted Aegon for revenge on Dorne.

Dalton's first act was to launch a surprise attack. To do this, he worked to keep his involvement a secret until the opportune moment. In the meantime Aegon ordered all his remaining troops to abandon the castles and move to the Dornish marshes. Naturally the Dornish moved back in thinking Aegon was withdrawing and celebrated their victory over the dragon.

Once Aegon had withdrawn, the Blackreynes, Targaryens and the rest of the small council made the last moment preparations. In the War Room of the Black Tower, they overlooked a large detailed model of dorne

"That yellow toad has made a fool, out of me long enough," Aegon growled.

Dalton chuckled. "that's because you've been waging this war the wrong way," he replied. The Targaryens looked at him and continued. "The thing about your people is that you only know how to fight in one single way and it always involves dragons. The Ghiscari, the Rhoynar, the Andals it's all the same. Burn the enemy host in a pitched battle or burn the enemy castle or settlement. But this world is made up of different people and sometimes different people require different tactics."

"Then how do you intend to handle this?" Aegon asked.

Dalton drew out a rod and waved it across the Model, "tell me, what type of geography is Dorne?" Aegon and Rhaenys was silent but Visenya spoke, "it's a desert."

Dalton nodded, "precisely, between the burning temperatures and lack of crops, much like the North the terrain makes for an effective natural defense against invaders. This is Dorne's greatest asset since they have the home-field advantage which is always important. But what is their greatest strength can also become their greatest weakness." The Targaryens looked at each other confused wondering how that worked.

Noting their uncertainty, Dalton traced an invisible line across the map, the best way to fight the dornish is not to fight them at all, Food is scarce and water is more precious than gold. The Dornish and stubborn and fierce, but they can easily be manipulated by the burning of their crops, the destruction of their wells, harassment of their supply lines and cutting off all trade. In short, to defeat Dorne we will KICK HER IN THE STOMACH."

Daemon Velaryon spat scornfully, "this is a strategy for cowards, not soldiers," most of the small council nodded in agreement. "Would you have us resort to the methods of these lesser humans?"

Dalton smirked, "those lesser humans have killed thousands of your men as I recall. Tell me Lord Velaryon, how many dornish have you killed." This caused the Valyrian lord to sulk. Dalton turned to the rest of them, "I would have us do what ever is necessary to defeat Meria once and for all."

Aegon studied the map closely before speaking, "are you sure you can beat her?"

Dalton nodded, "I know the dornish well, I've studied them. That is a common mistake you have made Aegon, rushing into battle against enemies you don't fully understand."

"And how exactly do I do that?" Aegon asked.

"To understand a people you must study their culture, the best way to do that it to study their history or-" Dalton went to a nearby wall and pulled out a tapestry, "-their designs." He rolled out the tapestry revealing the sigil of house Martell, "You would be surprised what you can learn about a family just from looking at their banner."

"And what does their banner tell you?" Visenya wondered.

"The main colors of red and orange, symbolize the spirit and passion of the dornish, while the minor use of gold shows their potential intelligence. The Spear shows a warrior's will and the Sun proves they value in Independence and instinct. Between a strong spirit, killer instinct, and determination to defend their values, under a cunning mind it makes for a dangerous opponent."

"I fail to see how this helps us," Aegon scoffed.

"Because for every strength there is a weakness," Dalton replied. "Red symbolizes Hot Tempers, and short term focus which means they lack patience. The spear represents single mindedness, remember while the end of a spear is dangerous and it's length keeps a foe at bay, but it can only go after one enemy at a time, and once you side step it and close in the spear becomes useless. Such a strong sense of independence often leads to self importance and Hubris."

The council was silent at this and Dalton continued, "these are the weaknesses I intent to exploit. Rest assured we will defeat them, as long as you all followed my orders to the letter."

Dalton looked around the room as if daring anyone to challenge him. The council looked at each other and nodded reluctantly. "Very well Lord Blackreyne," Aegon consented. "I'm giving you full command of the war in Dorne, you shall have whatever means you require at your disposal." Aegon then stepped up to Dalton, "do not disappoint me and make no mistake this war with Dorne is to Unify westeros, not to ad another victory to your belt."

Dalton bowed and smiled, "I'm a Blackreyne Aegon, I do not desire glory only results for my king and kin."

Dalton waited until the Dornish had rebuilt their castles before starting his attack. First he sent large cargo ships within sight of the dornish castles escorted by two warships. Seeing Blackreyne ships along the coast was not an uncommon sight, Dorne often traded with the Sentinal Isles for supplies so they thought nothing of it to see such ships coming to make a trade. But on the night the tradesmen had done their part, the warships released their deadly cargo for within each of these ships were 900 warriors ready to strike.

On a flotilla of longships, the Arnorians crept up the coast and through the rivers. They slipped up to the castles and scaled the walls with grappling claws. Once inside they opened the gates and allowed the rest of their forces through. Caught off guard, the arnorians swarmed in killing any soldier in sight. But they were not trying to take the castle, their target was the Dornish nobles and their families. Dragged from their beds the noble families were escorted to the longships. Though Dalton was unable to capture all of them and a few families were able to escape including the Daynes, Fowlers, Ullers and Wyls.

Their household and remaining guards met a different fate. The household servants had their tongues ripped out while the guards lost a whole leg. Once this was done the Arnorians left the castle intact with the now crippled household inside. They then returned to their ships with their precious cargo.

Dalton personally led the surprise attack on Sunspear, bypassing the Shadow City and it's three curtain walls by sending his Valkerans in to open the threefold Gates. The Martells were caught at dinner and rounded up while their guards and servants were properly dealt with. Meria, her son Nymor and granddaughter Deria were forced on their knees by Stranger's Sons as Dalton Blackreyne entered the dining hall.

Meria looked at him expressionlessly, Nymor was terrified while Deria glared defiantly. Dalton smiled before speaking. "Princess Meria, Prince Nymore and Young Princess Deria, it would seem destiny had led us to meet in the theater of war. You are now outmatched and there will be no escaping the coming storm, you little game will come to an end."

"We will never surrender to you Blackreyne," Deria declared defiantly.

Dalton chuckled, "you misunderstand Young princess, I will not be accepting surrenders for quite some time. Not until I have taught your people a good sharp lesson. Your people will know loss, they will know horror, they will know failure, and they will know true defeat."

"Burns us and be done with it," Meria replied, "but we will never bend, bow of break."

Dalton chuckled again, 'burn you? Hardly, I'm no dragon nor will I do anything of the sort. I do not intend to burn you, and you will not be broken, bowed or bent but you will be beaten."

He nodded to the Stranger's Sons who released the Martells, Meria looked at Dalton confused he simply smiled. "A cell makes for a poor view and the dead can't learn anything, don't worry, you'll understand soon enough." Dalton backed away giving her a mocking bow, "enjoy your dinner night Meria Martell, tomorrow we shall have our war."

As he left Ciron turned to him, "we're letting them go? I fear I don't understand brother."

Dallton shook his head, "It's too early to be caging princes and princesses, besides if we imprison them who is left in charge?"

Ciron thought for a moment, "I haven't a clue."

Dalton nodded, "neither to I, better to deal with the princess we know rather than the lords we don't." Ciron was doubtful but didn't judge his brother. As of that moment Aegon's Invasion was over and the Dalton Campaign had begun.

When Meria learned that Dalton had entered the war she grew fearful. The Princess of Dorne was not easily fazed, not even by Dragons and least of all by men. But if there was one person she did fear and that was Dalton Blackreyne.

It may have been two decades but she remembered well the last time Dorne warred against Troyad. The Martells and Blackreynes had never had good terms with each other, it was no secret that the Blackreynes openly supported the Martells greatest rivals the Yronwoods and they all knew the Blackreynes sought to make them the rulers of Dorne. However due to the distance between them, both houses look at each other with a degree of tolerance.

Before the Great Slaver War, Dorne held control of the enterance to the Narrow Sea and extracted large taxes on ships from Lannisport, Gulltown and Roon. This made House Martell quite wealthy. That all stopped when the Blackreynes populated the Stepstones with the freed slaves of Essos and renamed it the Sentinel Isles. Through the Sentinal Isles, Dorne's control over the vital chokepoint was destroyed and given over to Troyad who's taxes were half that of Dorne's. Thus traders bypassed the dornish entirely for the cheaper safer route.

With a major source of income gone Meria made the mistake of attacking the Sentinal Isles. After Dev's death rule passed to his brother Harron, Harron once a hard yet able man had fallen into a depression after loosing his sons to a sickness that had spread to the isles. Between their absentee ruler, the plague and the Sentinel Isles unfinished defenses Meria believed it was the perfect time to strike. She hoped to force a settlement with the Blackreynes and at the very least regain some control over the trade routes.

Due to the surprise of the attack she was met with success taking out an arnorian fleet and several patrols before taking the islands of Ramstone and Tombstone. But there was one factor she had not counted on, the twelve year old heir Dalton. At the Battle of Tombstone, Dev's eldest son took up the sword Fury and clashed with leader of the invaders Joffrey Dayne. Joffrey had more experience but Dalton was determined and fought back as hard as he could. Despite receiving a dozen wounds, Dalton managed to hold Joffrey's advance long enough for the army to retreat. Joffrey nearly succeeding in ending him had their not been intervention from the Stranger's Sons.

Another factor Meria had not counted on was the people's utter loyalty to the Blackreynes. When her men tried to take control of the islands the residents rose up against her. with overwhelming force they swarmed her armies and routed them from the islands. It was something she should have foreseen. Arnorians were already known for their loyalty but these people were utterly devoted to their overlords. They practically worshiped the ground the Blackreynes walked on holding them next to gods. One had to remember that these were slaves once and the Blackreynes not only gave them their freedom they gave the former slaves new lives, better lives. It was something they would never forget. The idea of a foreigner trying to overthrow them for profit was an unforgivable crime one that would be repaid in blood.

Once he was back in Bloodstone, the Young Prince reformed the army and orchestrated a counter attack which resulted in Dalton slaying Meria's younger brother who was 50 and two younger sons. After the death of her sons Meria sued for peace with Dalton, a peace that remained shakey at best due to Dalton's own younger brother Tyron fighting alongside King Argilac against her.

The next three years of the First Dornish War became known as the Dalton Campaign but to the dornish it was known as Dorne's worst nightmare. Meria had been prepared for Aegon but she was not prepared for Dalton Blackreyne. Over the many decades of her reign trained her army rigorously so she was ready for a fight. But she wasn't ready for what the Blackreynes were about to unleash on Dorne

Dalton's accounts of his campaign in Dorne was meticulously detailed and gave an unbiased account of the events. Giving praise when it was deserved and condemnation when nessecary. Because of this Maesters chose to using his journals as a basis from which to record the events of the Dornish war.

Dalton's journal stated that Dorne had a standing army of 30,000 men comprised of two types of soldiers, spearmen and horse archers. Dalton further detailed that Dorne had a secret Sorority of the women in particular were trained as assassins, spies and infiltrators. they were called the Scorpios. These were the same assassins behind the attack in Kings Landing that drew Dalton into the war and killed Harlan Tyrell in the deserts of Dorne. Dalton also stated that an additional 20,000 could be raised but only as a result of heavy conscription of it's people which included a large number of women.

After this initial attack, Dalton sent his massive fleet to blockade the entire dornish coastline. 400 galleys and a thousand longships surrounded dorne, cutting off vital trade and conducting raids on the dornish coast. This blockade would later be known as the Noose. Next he called in scores of stonemasons and builders to the Princes Pass and the Boneway, then he started on a huge construction project.

It started with a trench 30 feet wide and 30 feet deep coated in filth crusted wooden stakes. Next was earthen ramparts topped with a spiked stockade and watchtowers. Then the final touch a sloped stone wall 60 feet high, 30 feet thick at the top and 60 at the base. Catapults and scorpions lined the walls with guard towers every 60 meters.

The only way through this barrier was a single gateway with a wooden bridge spanning the trench. The gateway is just wide enough for a single cart and protected by 2 forts which flanked the pass on either side through a tunnel of murder holes, arrow slits, and several portcullises. A single gatehouse acted as the command tower for the wall. To protect from a northern incursion, another spiked trench and palisade was built behind the forts.

Both fortifications were wedged in between the red mountains and guard towers were constructed at their peaks. The fortifications on the boneway were constructed just north of the Wyl river this made the river a natural barrier. While the ones in the Prince's Pass were built just south of Nightsong. Not only did they serve as a barrier they also served to mark the border between Dorne and the rest of Westeros.

When Meria realized what Dalton was doing she immediately sent skirmishing parties to put a stop to the work. Lightly armoured spearmen and horse archers came in the dead of night harassing the workers and disrupting their progress as much as possible. At the start Meria's skirmishers where met with success and were able to slow construction for a time, but the Martells only succeeded in prolonging the inevitable. Legions of archers defending the workers drove back the skirmishers and Dalton had planted caltrops in the fields making the harassments more and more difficult. As the fortification slowly took form the success of the skirmishers lessened until they barely made any progress at all.

They were known as the Shackles. They were given the names Prince Shackle and the Bone Shackle based on their respective locations. It took a whole year for them to complete the shackles. Once they were complete Dorne was completely cut off and rendered the traps and ambush points set up in the passages worthless since the main paths into Dorne were blocked off. Dalton assigned a force of reachmen to garrison the Prince Shackle under Lord Tarly while a force of Stormlanders garrisoned Bone Shackle under Lord Swann.

The Shackles coupled with the Noose ensured that Dorne was cut off from the world. After the completion of the Shackles Dalton was ready to begin the next phase of his invasion. Unlike Aegon, Dalton did not come with a great host nor did he come by land. Instead his invasion came solely by sea.

The Blackreynes attacked with staggering perfection and efficiency. From their longships the Arnorian forces engaged in a series of lighting raids by sailing up every river in Dorne. They took every vessel that floated and attacked every settlement in sight. The Orphans who plied the rivers were also captured and instead of being taken to Grey Gallows, they were taken to Troyad far from Dorne. Unlike Aegon who frequently used his dragons to raze these places Dalton used his thestrals solely for scouting and reconnaissance.

First Dalton had Ciron target the towns such as Planky Town, the Water Gardens, Godsgrace, Vaith and the Shadow City. When they came in they found only women and children, but it didn't matter for Ciron had his orders. After driving the people out of the Town, Ciron and his men took everything that wasn't nailed down. The crops, the livestock, tools and furniture, down to the last crumb and useless item was taken. As a final touch Ciron buried their prized wells. After stripping the towns Ciron left the now desolate Town relatively intact. Once this was done Ciron returned to the Blockade leaving the people with only their lives, the clothes on their back and an empty home.

Next were the castles, With the ruling nobles incarcerated they were met with little resistance so they were able to take these places with ease. Starfall, Wyl, Vulture's Roost, Blackmont, Hellholt, Saltshore, Lemonwood, Godsgrace, Vaith, Ghost Hill, and The Tor all fell in rapid succession. The inhabitants surrendered as they had done with Aegon but as Dalton had promised he did not accept. But instead of kicking them out as was done with the towns. Dalton had them all corralled in the Sentinel Island of Grey Gallows where they would be kept under the watchfull eyes of Arnorian guards. This was to ensure security since Dalton didn't want them to be spilling the secrets of their castles to anyone. Instead of taking one of these castles for himself, Dalton chose the ill reputed island of Ghaston Grey as his headquarters.

Soon there were only four castles left, Yronwood, Skyreach, Sandstone and Sunspear. Sandstone was the first to fall finding it through the guidance of thestrals. But unlike the other castles, they did not settle here. Being landlocked and in the middle of the desert. Dalton did not see it as strategically important. Instead they stripped it, razed it and returned to their ships.

After Sandstone came Yronwood, when that too fell the path was clear Skyreach which fell soon after. Upon witnessing the fate of many of her fellow dornishmen Meria was determined to escape that fate and fled Sunspear with her family leaving the gates of her home open to Ciron who made Sunspear his base.

Most of the castles were given a garrison of 300 men, 100 legionaries and 200 archers and commanded by a castellan. But the more vital Strongholds Like Sunspear, Yronwood, Starfall and Fowler had double that number. The soldiers Dalton used in Dorne came not from Troyad but from the Sentinel Isles. Though they received the same training as the ones in Troyad their equipment differed slightly due to the hotter climate. Though still using the same weapons, instead of the usual breastplate, greaves, vambraces and helms, the Soldiers of the Sentinel isles wore riveted chainmail which was a good heatsink stitched in between two thin layers of linen dyed tan. This covered much of the body save for a few places. Along with the usual studded gloves and boots they also had a kettle helm with a wide brim to protect them from the sun.

When each of these castles were taken the castellans made sure to fortify it as much as possible, digging trench and spike, setting up a balanced patrol and strengthening the gate and doors. All nonessential parts of the Castle were sealed off giving them less ground to patrol. They also had a pack of 10 guard dogs as a precaution. Knowing that the dornish had Tunnels dug under all their castles, so when they found such tunnels they blocked the entrances with concrete. They used masons to inspect the castles for any structural irregularities which were often the telltale sign of hidden passages and rooms. Once the castles were secure, supplies from the ships where brought in under heavy escort. The supplies included wood, grog, flour, wheat, barley, oats, beans and honey. Though the castles had their own stockpiles but the Blackreynes set these ablaze on the off chance that the dornish tainted it with some form of poison.

From their ships and castle bases, the Arnorians ravaged the countryside destroying the wells and Canals as well as sowing the fields with fire and salt. Dorne was mostly a desert and what fertile land it did have was based near rivers which fed them through canals. They also sent out patrols to search for stragglers and harass foragers who came to the river for water.

Dalton personally led skirmishers into the red mountains north of the Wyl River and used it to systematically root out any insurgents that may cause trouble in the future. He also searched for any goat paths, tunnels and other hidden routes he could find and had them blocked off by collapsing the flanking cliffs. This would hopefully trap the dornishmen hidden in the mountains within and limits their raids.

The surviving dornish houses had gathered in the one castle that was neither occupied or destroyed. Kingsgrave, the seat of House Manwoody located in the Red Mountains. From here they would plan their war against Dalton. The Battle of Wills had begun.

Year by year, the siege of Dorne would continue. With their homes made desolate, the dornish were driven into the Red Mountains, where the dornish armies were hiding. The hidden caves there found themselves flooded with half a million refugees from the siege. The caves had wells and a great deal of provisions stashed away and from the start Meria had her people ration what they had. But with so many mouths to feed it she knew it would not last forever. It was Dalton's way of telling her "They're your people, you take care of them. The Dornish are not my headache."

Since the construction of the Shackles Meria planned raids against Blackreyne supply runs. They still had a number of secret Passages in the Red Mountains that Dalton had yet to find so they used them to bypass the Shackles and raid the Reach and the Stormlands for food. But with the Prince's Pass and the Boneway blocked, the parties were no bigger than 1,000 lest they were spotted and risked the Passages being discovered by Dalton.

Meanwhile the arnorians enjoyed a steady flow of provisions. With only a few hundred mouths to feed, the fully stocked castles were able to last 2 years before they needed to be resupplied. The men on the blockade faired just as well since all they needed to do was fish for more food or sail into the river to pick up freshwater.

As time passed other Dornish began trying to retake their castles, one of the first attacks was against Hellholt. Under the cover of night, Lord Uller gathered an army of 2,000 men and used secret passages to get into the castle. But when they began their attack the Ullers were unprepared for two things.

One was the dogs, who quickly picked up on the commotion and started barking thus alerting the garrison. The second was the garrison itself. Lord Uller thought he would be surprising the Arnorians while they were asleep but instead he was confronted by not a few guards but a fully awake, fully prepared garrison equipped and ready to fight.

To counter night time attacks, Dalton had his men developed a unique watch system called the Nocturnal Switchback. One fourth of the garrison would keep watch during the day while the rest slept, then as night time fell the other fully rested 3/4ths would take over. Arnorian soldiers learned to sleep in their armour so when the alarm sounded it didn't take them long to ready themselves.

The arnorians fought well and forced the Ullers into retreat. this was the same luck the other Dornishmen left, many times they assaulted their castles and each time they were driven back. Since Dalton had the household kicked out, they had nobody inside to help them.

Head to head against Arnorians the Dornishmen stood no chance. While their own phalanxes could hold their own against an Arnorian Phalanx, they lacked the arnorians flexibility and fared poorly in close quarters fighting. Their copper disks over leather and flowing silk was a poor defense against Blackreyne blades and arrows.

The Dornish lords were growing agitated by these setbacks and discussed with Meria what they should do. Joffrey Dayne wanted to attack the Shackles, But Meria knew that such an endeavor would require a great deal more men than Dorne had. Instead she decided to take a gamble and personally lead an all out assault on her home of Sunspear, which was currently held by Dalton's brother Ciron, Sunspear held the largest garrison and had a great deal of provisions stored up. Such a victory could prove to benefit them in the future.

The Retaking of Sunspear was the largest and bloodiest battle of the Dalton Campaign. About 10,000 Dornishmen attacked Sunspear against a garrison of Arnorians under Ciron. Though initially only having 600 men, Ciron called in reinforcements from the Sentinel Isles which doubled his fighting force. He was certain that this would be more than sufficient to hold the dornish back.

The Attack began as the sun fully set. While distracting the defenders with a frontal assault on the Gates, Meria had a second smaller force creep into the secret passages and entered the Shadow City allowing her to attack the defenders on the walls. Once he realized that the outermost walls were compromised Ciron ordered his remaining men to abandon those positions and defend the third innermost wall.

Knowing the inner ward would be heavily guarded, Meria pressed the frontal assault as a diversion while 2,000 of her best men scaled the sea side wall. The frontal force made sure to make as much noise as possible to drown out the barking of the dogs. Once they were up and over the wall the surprised the defenders by attacking from the rear.

Once the Arnorians were surprised from behind 10 men slipped up past them and opened the gates to the main force and they swarmed in hitting the defenders from either side. Outflanked Ciron ordered his men to fall back to the Sandship. But Meria knew her castle better than anyone alive and set up a maze of ambushes and traps picking off the arnorians bit by bit. Knowing they were beaten Ciron prepared to fight to the death. He was tempted to call for aid but he knew that his brother would not reach him in time. So his last act would be to sent a final raven to Dalton, the scroll said simply, 'take care of him for me.'

In Ciron's Last stand, he felled a hundred dornishmen before facing Joffrey Dayne. The other dornishmen formed a circle as the two dueled. Though Ciron was a seasoned warrior it was clear that Joffrey was superior to him and eventually Joffrey shattered Ciron's swordstaff and dornish used blowpipes to hit Ciron with poisoned darts, Ciron collapsed to the ground and slipped into unconsciousness. The capture of Ciron and the retaking of Sunspear seemed to be their greatest triumph but it came at a price. Though all the arnorian defenders had been slain the dornish lost 6,000 men retaking the castle.

Ciron survived the battle and by the time he awoke, he was bound to an overhead beam staring into the face of Meria Martell. Upon seeing Meria, Ciron burst out laughing, "I must admit I've woken to nicer sights. It seems King Argilac did not lie after all."

The response he got was a whip lashing across his face, Ciron's head snapped to the side with a grunt before turning his head back to Meria. "Just like their princess undisciplined and well past it's prime."

"I would stop talking if I were you," Meria advised him.

Ciron smirked, "or what? You gonna kill me?" He received several kicks to his stomach, but he grunted and shook it off.

Meria grabbed him by the chin and made him look at her, "you will pay for all the suffering you brother has caused us."

Ciron laughed, "do your worst you withered hippopotamus. Dornish aren't the only people who do not break."

Meria's eyes narrowed and turned to her captain, "he's all yours Lord Uller consider it a gift."

The Lord of hellholt bowed, "my pleasure Princess." He then brought in several men who cut him loose and dragged him away. Meria looked after him saddened by the sight, she had looked into that Ciron's eyes and saw a man who was ready to die. Dalton knew this and Meria privately suspected that it also factored into why Ciron didn't call for aid.

The Fate of Ciron Blackreyne remained a mystery, Meria never wrote to Dalton about his brother whether to ransom him or to taunt him. It is popularly speculated that the Ullers spent futile hours torturing the Blackreyne, But Ciron didn't give them the satisfaction. He exhausted a dozen torturers without uttering a cry. All they got out of him was hysterical laughter. A later Maester wrote that Ciron died cackling as his torturers grew old and grey in their frustrating attempt to break him. So Ciron finally joined his other in death, thus ending the Blackreyne twins.

Ciron's death was seen as a victory for some dornish but Meria knew that this would not stop the war. Due to the heavy losses they suffered in the battle Meria determined to only retake the Castles she deemed important enough. The retaking of Sunspear marked a pattern in these battles, from Skyreach to Starfall.

Knowing they couldn't take Arnorians head on the Dornish used a different weapon that was plentiful in their land, Venom. Drawn from scorpions and snakes and populated the desert. The Dornish laced their weapons with whatever they could.

But when they first used this they quickly realized that regular venom proved to be less effective on Arnorians than previously thought. As part of their intense training Arnorian soldiers consumed daily food laced with such venom, not enough to kill them but enough to feel the effects. As a result their immune systems were highly tolerant of standard venom. To counter this the Dornish mixed the vemons with other herbs and ingredients to make them exotic and thus a poison the Arnorians had no defense against.

With their poison laced weapons Dornish were able to inflict casualties on the Arnorians. But the enemy had a tendency to go into a frenzy when they realized what was happening to them and many were determined to take one last dornishman before dying.

The Dornish were able to take back Skyreach, Starfall, Wyle and Hellholt. Several attempts were made to retake Yronwood but these attacks were successfully repelled. But while they successfully retook their castles they paid a heavy price for them. Further more the storerooms yielded a disappointing result. The stockpile had enough food for four months, but it was meant for 300 people when rationed. It was demoralizing for the dornish to bleed so much for a meager reward.

Their numerous phyrric victories had caused the deaths of 3,000 Arnorians which the Blackreynes could replace compared to 15,000 dornishmen which the Martells could not replace. This meant that Dorne had lost half it's army fighting Dalton and if things continued as they were then Dorne would loose what remained of it's army by the end of next year.

The Dornish Lords had placed bounties on the Blackreynes. Dalton countered by offering food in exchange for the very same coin. If they had the money to place a bounty they had the money to buy food. This led to many desperate peasants turning on their liege lords, and dozens died as a result.

As in all wars atrocities tended to be committed on both sides. Dornish had taken great delight in torturing Lords and knights who fought for Aegon, but those joys ended once Dalton took over. Arnorians always fought to the death so the dornish were rarely able to take prisoners, though the ones that were captured proved to be much less fun than Aegon's knights. Years spent harnessing their pain tolerance ensured that arnorian soldiers died from the torture without cracking or even making a sound.

Dalton had captured thousands of dornishmen during his campaign but instead of ransoming them, Dalton gave them a taste of their own venom. The dornishmen were returned but instead of cutting off their sword hands he had one of their legs removed depending on which was their sword hands. Right handers lost their right legs and left handers lost their left leg. One dark note was that the arnorians tended to use the bodies of the dead enemy soldiers to feed the dogs or make stew to ensure their stockpiles lasted longer. Though they did the curtesy of returning the bones.

By the fifth year the situation in Dorne was growing desperate, the stored food was used up and famine was starting to spread. The raiding parties could never bring enough food to feed the refugees.

Cavalry battles never happened in Dorne and usually occurred in the Marshes of the reach or the Stormlands. Here Westeros bared witness to the deadliest cavalry engagements of the war a clash between two nations that had mastered the art of horse archery. Like the Arnorians, horse archers made up the majority of Dornish cavalry and both sides used a unique mount. Dorne had the Sand steed, an small nimble horse capable of riding 36 hours without tiring. this made them perfect for Dorne's hit and run tactics. On the other hand Troyad used the Zorse, a fierce and hardy beast capable of traveling long distances without food or water, and could live off harsh plants.

Ser Joffrey Dayne, Lord Wyl Widow-lover and Lord Fowler were Dorne's greatest Heroes during the war. Leading raid after raid their terror spread throughout the south. Lord Fowler sacked Nightsong and Fellwood, Lord Wyle razed Old Oak and Fawnton, and Joffrey Dayne torched the fields surrounding Oldtown as well as half the Rainwood. A hundred towns and villages fell victim to Dornish wroth. Victims of note were Lord Fell and Oakheart

But like the food, this stream of success didn't last long. Dalton was getting better at anticipating their moves and began laying traps for them. Joffrey Dayne led another success raid, this time against the town of Cuy. But when he returned he found his path blocked by Dalton and a company of Rangers. Dalton grinned "hello old friend," he jeered.

When Joffrey saw Dalton he laughed harshly, "So you finally found me Blackreyne, What took you so long?"

Dalton smirked, "I was waiting for a falling star, to save it for a rainy day." Dalton drew Twilight, Joffrey did the same with Dawn. Thus the clash of the starswords began. But this was nothing new for the two warriors for Joffrey and Dalton had fought before.

Joffrey knew he could not pound away at Dalton as he did Ciron, if the duel between Aegon Targaryen and Dalton Blackreyne was anything to go by then Dawn was now facing it's dark twin. Equal in strength, weight and sharpness, Dawn and Twilight were a sight to behold gleaming in the sunlight they seemed to let out a glow and then they clashed a flash was seen. They clashed on horseback with Joffrey managing to kill Dalton's horse, only for Dalton to return the curtesy moments later. With their mount's dead they took the fight to solid ground.

When they first clashed Joffrey had won, but things had changed. Dalton was older now, stronger, swifter and battle hardened. The Duel between Dalton Blackreyne and Joffrey Dayne lasted hours with both men matching each other strike for strike, block for block. wound by wound. Joffrey proved to be Dalton's equal and as Dalton would put it in his personal journal, 'my Deadliest opponent.' Dalton finally emerged the victor by cutting off Joffrey's sword-hand. But instead of killing him Dalton spared his life as a sign of respect and even escorted him back to Starfall.

The defeat of Joffrey Dayne marked the decline of the dornish raids, after that the Blackreynes started stricking back. Lord Fowler was cornered by Malgus Blackreyne after a two month long chase and had his head ripped out along with his spine. Wyl Widow-lover had no better luck and was ambushed by Daala Blackreyne who gave him to Orys Baratheon as a Gift.

With the fall of their best commanders, the Dornish raids grinded to a halt and thus ended their main sourse of precious food. To make matters worse Dalton took advantage of the deaths of these lords and led another counter attack retaking Skyreach and Wyl. He was also able to locate Kingsgrave by tracking one of the last raiding parties sent their base. This time he managed to capture their families. The Fowlers, Manwoodys and Wyls were taken to the other dornish captives at Grey Gallows.

Dalton's successes led to his name being associated with fear among most Dornishmen. Mothers told their children that 'Dalton Blackreyne will come for you.' Soon they gave him a moniker that would stick forever 'The Suncrusher.' Meria knew they needed more than a miracle, they needed something unexpected, something beyond Dalton Blackreyne's control. The situation had grown beyond desperate and if something didn't happen she would have to consider what she once thought unthinkable.

But Meria would not live to make that momentous choice. In 13 AC Princess Meria Martell died in her sleep at the age of ninety and five. Dorne mourned the loss of the princess that defended them them against the dragons invasion and led them through the Thestral's siege. Now with Meria dead leadership of Dorne passed to her son Nymor.

Nymor at the age of seventy was already a man of failing health when he became ruler of Dorne. Though he tried to remain strong he didn't have his mother's wisdom or her resolve. Weary of war and no longer able to watch his people suffer. He talked with what remained of his council which included Ser Joffrey, Deria, his Maester and Captain of the Guards. The rest were either dead or captured. They debated for weeks until a decision was made. So with a heavy heart Prince Nymor wrote to Dalton in a single raven scroll. it had only three words in it but those three words were worth a hundred.

 _Bent, Bowed, Broken._

Dorne had surrendered and after nine long years, the Dornish War was finally over. Many dornishmen disapproved Nymor's decision to surrender and wanted to fight on but Nynor remained stoic.

The parties agreed to meet on neutral ground and decided on the Northern Bank of the Wyle River just south of the Bone Shackle. The dornish had set up their own terms for surrender.

1) House Martell would keep it's titles of Prince and Princess as a sign of acceptance of Rhoynish culture.

2) The Shackles, the Torrentine and the Wyl river would serve as a Border between Dorne the Stormlands and the Reach. The trenches would be filled and the palisades torn down but the walls would remain.

3) Dorne would be provided supplies so it's people could rebuild their lives including medicines and food

The terms were acceptable and Dalton and Aegon agreed to the terms but added a twist. Several Dornish houses were given the title of Prince along with the Martells.

House Martell- Prince of the Broken Arm

House Yronwood- Prince of the Stone Way

House Dayne- Prince of the Torrentine

House Fowler- Prince of the Wide Way

House Manwoody- Prince of the Wyl

House Blackmont- Prince of the Brimstone

The Orphans- Princes of the Greenblood

Houses Manwoody and Blackmont had their old castles torn down and rebuild stone for stone at these strategic locations. As such they The Manwoodys and Blackmonts traded place with the Wyls and Ullers respectively. This was meant to weaken the Martells influence over Dorne itself.

The Martells consented and the Peace Treaty was signed. With the last stroke of the feather Dorne officially became part of the Seven Kingdoms. Thus the regions of westeros were finally united as one nation. Dalton released his highborn prisoners as promised alive and unspoiled Dalton later visited Meria's grave and placed an ornate golden spear on it. "MY compliments to you Meria Martell," Dalton acknowledged, "You were indeed a most worthy opponent."

The Dornish War had come at a terrible price. Over 100,000 Dornish lost their lives including 25,000 of their best warriors. It was a number Dorne would struggle a century to recover from. In a twist of irony most of these deaths were attributed to Aegon and not Dalton. While Dalton certainly succeeded in eliminating more of Dorne's armies, most of the civilian casualties were due to dragonfire with 3,000 elderly dying of starvation. The losses for the invaders were quite different. Aegon lost 50,000 men in his invasion including the counter offensives and 10,000 smallfolk to the dornish raids. Dalton's losses were 5,000 at the most.

Because of this Dorne would forever consider Dalton to be THE enemy, for he had succeeded in doing what they believed impossible by bringing Dorne to it's knees. Tensions would run high between Dorne and Troyad for generations.

After the Pact was signed Dalton met with Lord Yronwood and recalled the events of the war over drinks. Little did the Martells or Targaryens know that the Yronwoods and the Orphans had remained the Blackreynes allies throughout the war. Their capture served to get the Yronwoods out of harms way during Dalton's campaign and to eliminate suspicion. of all the dornish houses the Yronwoods suffered the least casualties and managed to retain most of their fighting force of 6,000 would make the Yronwoods the most powerful military force in dorne and would serve as House Blackreyne's enforcers in the region.

The Dornish War was over but it would not bring true peace. The Targaryens would face many obstacles during their reign and their trials had only just begun.


End file.
